It may be quiet in the garden right now, but this is the perfect time to get busy planning for spring!
The cold, dark days have me dreaming of the cheerful colors of Spring. If you've gardened for a few seasons, then you know that despite it being quiet in the garden, now is a great time to plan for the days ahead.
Plan for your Spring Garden Now
Without much to do outside right now, let all your mental energy go into planning your next big project. Want to expand your garden space? Grow new varieties? Start a flower garden? Plant fruit trees? Winter is your time to make those plans come to life. I always get excited envisioning what I will add to my garden that I've never grown before.
Take some time this winter, ideally in December/January to explore the latest offerings from seed catalogs and nurseries. If you like to do things old school, request a free printed catalog and brew a cuppa while flipping through all the gorgeous photos circling your favorites to your heart's content. My favorite catalogs are:
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
Botanical Interests
Burpee Gardening
Johnny's Selected Seeds
Once you have your vision, it's time to write it all down. There are plenty of methods for designing your garden space, but I enjoy sketching everything in so I can see how much room I have to work with.
For the school garden, I prioritize plants that I know the kids will love. Things like sugar snap peas, rainbow carrots, and lettuces are always great for tastings. This year, we are also expanding the varieties we have planted to include more asian greens, lettuces, and radish varieties to provide opportunities for kids to taste something new and cook different cuisines together.
Let the Seed starting begin!
In late January and early February, get your seeds started. You can start lots of seeds in smaller trays and then transfer them into larger pots as they outgrow the original cells. There are many aspects of seed starting that are great for kids, let them fill the seed trays with soil, make the soil-less mix, or design plant tags.
Some tips for starting seeds:
Use a soil-less mixture for seed starting. This minimizes the amount of potential pathogens in the soil as the baby plants are developing. I love using coco coir as a base for my seed starts. Sometimes I will mix it half and half with potting soil to add some nutrients. Once my seedlings are big enough to transfer, I'll move them into larger pots that have a higher percentage of potting soil in them.
Water from the bottom. Some seeds are tiny and need to sit at or near the surface of your soil. Watering can disturb them, or even wash them clear out of your seed trays. Fill a tray with water and then set your planted cells into that tray. The coco coir will wick up the moisture from the bottom over 10-30 minutes, and nothing will be disturbed in the process.
Grow extras of everything. Think you'll only need 6 broccoli plants? Plant 12... at least. Chances are that something will happen to your initial plants. Disease, pests, a new puppy digging in the beds. Having extras on hand will save you the pain of realizing your spring garden dreams were ruined in an instant by one excited pup. If you end up with too many, .
Use a greenhouse or some kind of cover. Seeds are happiest when the temperature is constant. Some seeds in particular, like peppers, need the soil to reach a certain temperature in order to germinate at all! In general, if the soil is too cold, it limits or stops certain nutrients from being accessible to your seedlings. This will cause your fledgling plants to turn purplish and stop getting any bigger. Using a greenhouse, or tray cover to hold in moisture and heat will ensure your plants have the environment they need to do well.
After investing heavily in a few different designs that were promptly destroyed by the wind, I've found these greenhouses are all I need. Be sure to set them up in a location that is protected from wind! Do not underestimate how easily these can be knocked around in one bad storm. Anchor the base with bricks or bags of soil, place it against a wall or fence, and tie off the cover so that it won't get pulled away from the frame.
In general, if the soil is too cold, it limits or stops certain nutrients from being accessible to your seedlings. This will cause your fledgling plants to turn purplish and stop getting any bigger.
Heating mats can be really helpful. If you are growing really early in the winter, you may want to help your seedlings along with a few heat mats. These are especially handy for starting pepper and tomato plants early since they require the soil to be warm in order to germinate. If you notice that your little plants are starting to turn purple, putting a heat mat underneath them can encourage them to take in more nutrients and improve.
Check out some of the other winter tasks you can tackle during this season.
Full Winter Checklist:
You may be harvesting: bok choi, lettuces, kale, spinach, mizuna, carrots, radishes, spinach, chard, potatoes, oranges, lemons.
Time to prune shrubs and trees (except apricots)
In late winter, plant bare root trees and berries
Cut back dead growth and dead flower heads
Apply compost or mulch around perennials and fruit trees
Set up a winter compost pile
Start planning your spring garden
Order seeds from catalogs
Order seed starting supplies
Start seeds in late winter
Apply copper sulfate treatment to peaches and nectarines to control for leaf curl and shot hole fungus (pick a non-windy, non-rainy day, don't spray near metal it can cause corrosive damage)
Cover plants that are frost sensitive
Clean and store garden tools out of the rain
Toss grass seed and wild flower seed now to take advantage of the rainy days
Rake leaves out of planted areas and around the base of plants to minimize rot damage and disease, leave leaves in areas that are not landscaped to help beneficial insects and fungi
Last chance to plant flower bulbs for this spring/summer
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