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Who loves tomatoes? This girl!
I don’t think anything says “Summer” quite like a basket filled with home grown tomatoes still warm from the sun! Our garden is planted with multiple heirloom varieties every year.
But the process begins in Spring with tiny seeds! Today I’d like to show you how I plant tomato seeds using recycled containers.
While there are plenty of fancy-schmancy items that can be purchased, all that is really needed is a container that can hold soil. That’s it. This is a clear plastic drinking cup filled with potting soil. (Please pardon the dust. They are stored in my greenhouse) A few seeds are sprinkled on top, gently covered and thoroughly watered.
Ya know those individual size pudding or applesauce cups? They are great for packing lunches. Used, clean ones are perfect for starting seeds. That’s what is on top. It allows plenty of light through and creates a tiny greenhouse for each batch of seeds. As water evaporates, the cups capture it and let it rain back down, keeping the soil evenly moist.
The plastic drinking glasses with pudding cup on top are placed in a sunny, south facing window. Within a couple of weeks, tiny green seedlings emerge.
Once there are at least four leaves, these baby tomato plants are ready to transplant into individual pots. Plant the seedlings deeply, up to the bottom leaves.
Roots will sprout all along the stem. Label each plant and water thoroughly.
Check out all these lovely heirloom tomato plants! They will be living in my greenhouse until time to go in the ground. Depending on how quickly the seedlings grow, I may need to transplant them into bigger pots one more time.
Here in Arkansas, the last average frost is mid-April. I wouldn’t dare plant tomatoes before then. We will be watching the weather in mid to late April and will wait until the long range forecast shows ten days of nice, warm night temperatures. THEN, we will plant the tomatoes in the garden, giving us baskets filled with heirloom tomatoes still warm from the sun! YUM!
If you love Spring, you’ll want to know I am co-hosting a party just to say “Welcome, Spring”! Please come back tomorrow and join the fun!
😉 -Marci
