Note: Use only unwaxed paper cups for your seedling pots, so they will decompose when planted in the garden later.
Start your seeds indoors 4 to 6 weeks before the last frost date in your location.
To get Started:
Buy seedling mix, or make your own [it’s cheaper] – See DIY: Seedling Mix Formula, on this Blog. Seedling mix is a soil-less mixture specifically made for sprouting seeds.
Poke three to four holes in the bottom of each paper cup.
Fill each paper cup with seed-starting mix, leaving 1/2 inch of space below the top.
Plant two seeds in of each cup. Check seed packet for seed planting depth; each variety is different. Cover seeds with seedling mix.
Sit cups in trays, or boxes, water, then cover trays loosely with sheets of plastic wrap.
This helps keep moist and prevents mix from drying out.
Place in a warm location, after two days, start checking cups daily, water if
Remove the plastic wrap when most of the seeds have sprouted.
Place trays in a warm sunny indoor location. If placed next to a window turn trays regularly for equal sun exposure.
Water on a regular basis, but don’t over water.
When plants have grown two true leaves, thin by snipping off the weaker plant in each cup.
After the last frost date in your area, “harden off” your plants before planting
To Harden Off Plants: Sit plants outside in a protected area for four hours, then bring them back inside. Increase “outdoor time “ by two hours each day. After a week of hardening off, you can plant the starts in your garden.
The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the Medford District Bureau of Land Management (BLM) are sponsoring free guided hikes at the Table Rocks.
Plant Name: Kalmia microphylla
Japanese Hori Hori Knife –Used for weeding, digging, cutting roots, dividing perennials, removing plants from pots. Unbelievably versatile!
Nejiri Gama Garden Hoe (Japanese garden hand tool) Narrow end pushes deep into the soil helps with weeding, planting seedlings, aerating the soil, making seed trenches, and breaking up clods & soil.
Hand Plow Ho-Mi Digger (short-handled) A Korean tool that’s an all-around hand-digging tool, useful for planting, weeding, rock-removal and finding irrigation lines.
Felco Pruners – Pruning, quality pruner, replaceable blades & parts, easy to sharpen. Right or Left handed offered. Felco 7: Is a ergonomic heavy duty pruner with a spinning handle, great for people with a arthritic thumb.
Kneelon Knee Pads – Flexible, Waterproof, durable, machine washable.
CircleHoe– For weeding & cultivating close to plants.
Potlifter – Lifts 250 lb – Saves your back when lifting pots or rocks. Also sold: Pro Potlifter for lifting 350 lbs.
Fiskars Softough Mico-Tip Pruners- Awarded the Arthritis Foundation Ease-of-Use Commendation for a design that is easy-to-use for people with arthritis or limited hand strength.
Corona Clipper Razor Tooth – 10″ Folding Pruning Saw – Sturdy, easy to use, easy to store. Lifetime warranty.