Gardening 102 spacing
Ok so now that we know how to "time" our seedlings lets talk about the rest of the information on the seed packed. It will tell you seed spacing; even though it sounds self explanatory it is tricky. When we read "place 12 inches apart" we space them 12 inches apart..... right? well here's the catch. When it says to space 12 inches apart you take 1/2 the distance, this means if you plant every 6 inches, in this case, the circumference AROUND the plant will be 12 inches. So plant your plants 1/2 the distance to the next plant, this allows for more garden plants.
The packet also usually tells number of days to germination and in what percentage of sun to plant them. It also will tell you the depth that you should plant and any other interesting descriptions or tips.
Try to organize your plants so that they are getting the maximum amount of sunlight. Place shorter plants in the front and taller plants in the back, direct your garden south as much as possible.
I have planted some of my plants early so that I can start my harvest earlier. Last year my first killing frost was in September and it happened just when my plants were starting to produce, tomatoes in particular. This is not happening again, I started some of my favorite eating tomatoes and they are doing fantastic and hopefully will produce for me all season. Our growing season is just so short here and you really need to extend it as long as possible.
AS of right now the things that you should have started inside are all your brassica's and you can start planting onion, spinach, other greens and peas in the ground. It says to start tomatoes and peppers indoors April 26, but I find this does not give me enough time to get them big enough to start growing in the garden. For the dates and schedule of planting look below at the garden planner. Keep in mind this is for MY garden growing zone 4.
This is second quarter of the moon phase and that means a fruit and flower planting week. This includes any plant that you harvest the fruit or flower.
If you start any seeds inside, here are my tips. #1. water from the bottom
#2. After sowing sprinkle cinnamon on the dirt lightly to help keep away flies and fungus.