Seed Starting, Transplanting & Grow Lights
Starting times will vary depending on the vegetable you are growing. Each seed packet will have specific sowing instructions for that type of vegetable. Read your seed packet carefully to get the best sowing time!
The process of bringing seeds outside is called hardening off. Hardening off is generally done sometime after the seedling has two full sets of normal leaves. In Minnesota, you want to begin hardening off seedlings in late April/early May.
If you have a southern facing window with all day sun, you may grow seedlings in a windowsill. Be sure to rotate the seedlings frequently to ensure the plants do not lean heavily towards the sun. For more even results, use a grow light, positioned roughly 4” above the topmost leaves of the seedlings.
We recommend using either high intensity T5 fluorescent bulbs, or LED grow lights. Both setups will produce excellent results. T5s are the typical grow light, are economical and come in frequencies that are helpful for plant development. LED technology...
Grow lights should be kept roughly 4-5” above the top of seedling leaves. If you are using very powerful LEDs, you could even keep them 8-10” away.
Grow lights should be used to mimic a natural sunlight cycle for plants. We recommend using them 12 hours a day, from roughly 7am to 7pm.
A rough estimate for the last frost date here in zone 4b is the first week of May. This is not exact, as Minnesota weather can be variable, but it does help for plantings.
A variety of seedling trays exist for seed starting. If you are starting smaller seeds, a simple peat cell tray works great. However, the larger the seed, the larger the initial pot should be. If you are starting larger seeds indoors such as: sunflowers...
Do not start any type of fertilizer regime for young seedlings until they have at least two full sets of regular leaves. Start with a root stimulator, then after a month you may move on to a gentle, weak (half strength) water-based fertilizer. Remember...
Let the roots tell you when to transplant. When you begin to see the seedling’s root growing out of the bottom of their current pot, it is time to transplant up to something larger. We recommend using a 4” nursery pot to transplant most seedlings. In...
Gertens carries a wide variety of both spring and autumn planted bulbs. Spring planted bulbs, such as gladioli and dahlias, are best started indoors in early April, and planted outside once the soil temperatures are above 55 F. Autumn planted bulbs, ...
The big three tips are: 1) Staking and training 2) Feeding and watering and 3) Harvesting and enjoying.
That depends on what caused the dead patches, if it’s grubs we recommend the bayer dylox grub control. If it’s fungal, Scotts disease X is recommended to stop the spread. If the disease has gotten down to the crown, it is dead and will need to be raked...