Here comes the sun!

Spring is slowly arriving and my plants at my window can tell. I've seen a recent growth spurt in all of them and I'm excited to show them off. I'm growing a lot of stuff, I can't tell you how many times I've agonized over growing one variety over another, or which herb fits well for my balcony. I finally made my choices (for the most part), and but I'm still constantly on the lookout for awesome seeds. I'm still going to Seedy Sunday yet I have a ginormous seed list (which I will probably post later).

I'm also very very pleased that I got my cilantro seeds from Cubit's – it's not showing on this blog, but I am absolutely in love with that herb. I use cilantro in almost everything and to think, I used to hate it (with a passion). I am particularly happy that I got some organic seeds, at least I can save some seeds and use it for the next season. Also another note, GO TO SEEDY SUNDAY! Get some seeds, it'll be fun.. I promise.

Some other great news, Daniel over at My Small Kitchen Garden finally got the seeds I sent him! He was kind enough to do a seed giveaway and I got some paste tomato seeds from him, as well as Blue Hubbard Squash, and these lovely Neck Pumpkin seeds. I plan to start sowing some seeds again, and will probably blog about the squash. I'm a little nervous, but hopefully it should be fine.

I should post some photos. I took a lot of photos over the week showing the growth of my baby plants. I hope you enjoy the photo spam!

PHOTO SPAM IN 3... 2.. 1.

My little Polka-dot plant, the pink in the leaves is just slightly showing.

 

 

Aunt Molly's Ground Cherry

One of my fave plants, Chinese 5 Colour Pepper, insanely beautiful fruit

 

Lupin, this plant has grown a lot. It makes me miss Prince Edward Island so much.

Red Currant Cherry tomato, it smells amazing and is so cute.

 

 

 

 

 

Cinnamon Basil

Organic Sweet Genovese Basil - thanks for the seeds Cubit's!

Flat-leaf Italian Parsley, just enjoying some sun

Mimosa Pudica, poor plant. I keep touching it, it must be so tired by now.

My chives from last season that came back. I left it outside, no care at all and it came back anyways!

Lamb's Ear, so fuzzy... so awesome.

Free Seeds!

The Eco-Family and Cubit's Organic Living are giving away some seeds!

CLICK HERE TO LOOK AT THE DETAILS!!

The packaging is so adorable, if you don't buy from her, you clearly hate animals and carrots.

Good luck everyone! I've bought a lot of seeds from Cubit's and I can assure you, they're the best! So enter, unfortunately it's only for Americans and Canadians -- free shipping to boot if you get some seeds!

Regardless of whether or not you get some seeds from the giveaway, I suggest you get some seeds from Cubit's anyways. Laura Watt is a lovely lady and her seeds are quality - she is truly a seed magician/wizard! She's so nice and prompt with her responses, and she really cares about GMO free seeds. It's important to be aware of the chemicals that we pump into our systems daily, and GMO free seeds is a place to start.

Plus, they have a great selection over there and I strongly recommend that you purchase something from there! Come on man, PURPLE PEPPERS and free shipping (US AND CANADA)!

Frugality to the rescue!

It's time for sowing seeds and I am trying to figure out what I want to plant this year. I wanted to try growing hot peppers from seed for the first time this year. I've heard that peppers are finicky to grow from seed, they rely, solely on the temperature of the soil on order to germinate properly. After consulting several trusted blogs and books, they all came to the general conclusion that peppers (whether sweet or hot) need consistent heat.

I was looking around for some heat mats made specifically for gardeners and was slightly disheartened that a lot of the high quality ones were a little too steep for my taste. I love plants, but I would love to save some money! So just by doing a little research online motivated by my own frugality, I decided to take thing into my own hands. This is by no means an original idea, but it's a great solution for those of us who cannot afford a heat mat at the moment.

I made a makeshift sort of greenhouse environment for my little seedlings. I already sowed my seeds in some moist soil before I started to gather materials needed for this little endeavor. Remember that once the seeds have sprouted, take them out of the makeshift greenhouse, they need sunlight as soon as they sprout!

What you need:   
    • A tray
    • A garbage/plastic bag (preferably a transparent one)
    • Your planters with seeds
    • A spray bottle

The tray I'm using. You need it to catch the water extra water should you water/mist your plants. It's also for convenience, it keeps your plants grouped together.

This is the garbage bag I used. A simple medium sized bag will do for my tray.

Some of the seeds I've sown in their peat planters.

 

I've assembled the planters on the tray and I'm putting the entire thing in the garbage bag.

 

 

I've tied it all together, there's still some space for air circulation which you need to prevent rot/mold from coming.

Putting the tray in a warm spot will ensure the "greenhouse effect." I put my tray on top of the fridge. If it gets too dry, you can just mist with a spray bottle. Check on them daily, to see if any sprouts come up.

The end result, is speedy germination. Aren't they cute?!