March's Greenhouse Tips
Owning, using, and enjoying your own greenhouse can be fun and relaxing - but there are still "Things To Do" to keep it clean, healthly, and usable. For each month of the year we have gathered useful greenhouse tips and information from our customers, employees and friends like you to help you get even more enjoyment from your greenhouse.
We've gathered these greenhouse tips from a variety of sources, much of it has been over the years and is not known. Please feel free to send us some of your own ideas.
Spring fever is here!
March is the beginning of the spring gardening season. Most bedding and potted plants grow very well in your Farm Wholesale Greenhouse. Some seeds like Tomato, Melon, and Cucumber need an extra heat source, while others such as Antirrhinum, Lobelia, and Petunia do not. Spring softwood cuttings can now be taken. If you have seedlings from an earlier sowing, they should now be transplanted to bigger pots. Established plants have begun to grow more actively and watering needs to take place on a more regular basis.
Feed growing plants with liquid fertilizer. Do not overfeed young plants. Use a fertilizer with a higher percentage of nitrogen to phosphate & potash for leaf growth. For flowering plants use a fertilizer high in potash. This will increase flowering at the expense of leaf growth.
Insects can become a problem this month. Keep on the lookout for greenfly, whitefly, and red spider mite. Spray with a greenhouse insecticide such as derris or permethrin before the problems get out of hand.
STARTING YOUR SEEDS
1. Start with good quality seed. Buy from a reputable supplier and donít open the packet until you are ready to plant the seeds.
2. Use a container that has good drainage. Avoid wooden trays as they can harbor disease organisms that are difficult to wash out. Plastic trays tend to be the best option.
3. Fill your container with compost or place directly in CocoLite planting medium. The surface should be about 1" below the top of the container. Sprinkle the surface with water the day before sowing. The surface should be moist but not wet. Scatter the seeds thinly over the surface. Larger seeds can be sown in rows.
4. Do not cover the fine seed with planting material. Other seeds should be covered to a depth that is twice the diameter of the seed in an even layer (follow the directions on your seed packet). Gently firm the layer with a board. Most but not all seeds need darkness to successfully germinate. Cover your seeds with a black plastic bag or a brown paper bag and place in your greenhouse for warmth. Do not use black plastic or a brown paper bag for seeds that need light to germinate such as Antirrhinum, Alyssum, Mimulus, Impatiens, Nicotiana, and Begonia.
5. Most seeds require a temperature between 65-70f degrees. Generally, you should germinate the seed at a temperature 10 degrees higher than the recommended temperature for growing the plant.
6. Once the seedlings break through the surface, remove the paper or black plastic. You may want to cover with a piece of glass or clear plastic for extra warmth & ambient moisture. Never let the compost or CocoLite medium dry out. Use a fine mister to water.
7. Once the first set of true leaves has opened the seedlings should be transplanted to trays or small pots with multi-purpose compost. Set the seedlings so the seed leaves are just above the surface. Handle the plants by the leaves - not the stems. Set seedlings 1-1 1/2" apart. Water as necessary and keep in temperatures between 50-55 degrees.
8. Seedlings destined for the outdoors must be hardened off to prepare them for life in the garden. Move the plants to the coldest part of the greenhouse and then to a cold frame. Set the plants outside during the daytime for a few days before planting in the garden.
Reference
Hessayon, Dr. D.G. The Greenhouse Expert. New York: Sterling, 1988.
ACCESSORY OF THE MONTH
Garden Coil is PERFECT for watering delicate seedlings. Its' light-weight thirty-foot hose makes it convenient to water throughout the greenhouse and hanging baskets. Adjustable nozzle gives fine mist or delicate watering. Trigger Lock gives intermittent or continuous flow.
BOOKWORM CORNER
Now that the majority of the gardening season is over, you might want to take time to read through The Greenhouse Expert. It will be of benefit for those who do not yet have their dream greenhouse as well as those who already are experienced in greenhousing. The book begins with choosing structure, equipment and the greenhouse site. From there on much of this volume is devoted to beautiful color photographs of flowers and vegetables with descriptions of each and suggestions for care and trouble-shooting. One especially useful feature is the monthly calendar which outlines care and maintenance specific to each month.
Our Greenhousing "How-To" Resouce Guide
|
