How To Prepare Seeds For Your Organic Vegetable Garden

By
menaka bharathi
-
24
1782
Seeds for organic vegetables
Seeds for organic vegetables
How To Prepare Seeds For Your Organic Vegetable Garden

Now that you are ready with your organic potting mixture, its time to start preparing seeds. As we have already discussed, the organic potting mixture needs at least 15 to 20 days time to get ready before you can actually fill them in your pots.

So this time gap can be used to prepare seeds of vegetables. I would usually use seeds that I have collected myself from previous season crops. This is possible only if you are using traditional variety seeds.

If you use hybrid varieties you would not be able to get quality seeds and you need to buy them again.

You can get seeds from SIM organics along with terrace garden kit or separately too. You need to ping here

Organic Vegetables Seed Preparation

Prior to planting, you need to prepare your seeds so that they germinate well and this also helps in reducing the time required for the plant to grow.

There are different kinds of seeds which need to be treated differently. Some vary in size, some in their germination percentage and many are dormant seeds that need to be broken out of dormancy.

Tips and Warnings

  • If treating seeds with acids, handle with care as they can be caustic to the skin and eyes.

Things Required

  • Seeds
  • Paper towels
  • Water
  • File or paring knife
  • Acid
  • Peat moss
  • Plastic tub
  • Freezer bags

Simple Seed Germination

This is for seeds that grow easily, you can follow this type of germination for wheat grass, green leafy vegetables, carrots, beets, tomatoes, chillies and so on.

  1. Sprinkle small seeds on a paper towel or filter paper and thoroughly soak the seeds and surrounding material with water. You just need to keep the paper wet.
  2. Wet a second piece of paper and place it over the first, covering the seeds.
  3. Leave the seeds soaking for up to 12 hours, check every hour to see when they begin to swell.  Keep adding water to keep the surface of the paper wet. You will be able to see outgrowths on the seeds after which you can plant them in the planned fashion.

Paper Cup Seed Germination

Instead of spreading over a paper you could use paper cups for germination of seeds. Using paper cups to germinate seeds works best for pots.

You can remove the lower part of the paper cup and plant directly into the pot.

You also have the advantage of growing for a longer period, say more than a week in the paper cup.

Hard-Shelled Seeds – Removing The Hard Surface

2. Treating with sulfuric acid

3. Treating with Gibberellic Acid

Once you are ready to plant the seedlings you need to take care about a lot of other things, will get to that in tomorrows post.

 

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24 COMMENTS

  3. This was a useful information. I mean, for all I knew, I just needed to put the seeds inside the soil and keep watering them till they start growing :p

  7. this is so informative. I have never tried the paper towel method… will try that … I need to find some winter vegetables as it’s soon going to be very very cold.

  13. So lovely that you are sharing all the steps.
    Didn’t know that pots need that much time to be ready 😉

  14. I have watched a friend of mine preparing seeds and it is fascinating! He was trying to germinate a special species of basil. So exciting when he gifted me a pot of the young plant. Still remember the fragrance.! Nice tutorial Menaka!

  15. Detailed information! I am a haphazard gardener.. I just sprinkle or sow seeds and pour water and pray it grows

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