C2B—Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 21,1981 Grow garden transplants first LITITZ Starting your own transplants from seed can be both fun and good economics. But there’s a knack to doing it suc cessfully. Here are some pointers which should help grow sturdy transplants for the garden. Here’s what’s needed: suitable containers, a warm place to germinate the seeds, a clean medium to grow them in, and enough light for them to grow well after germination Containers for starting seeds are as varied as the gardeners who grow them. Some people like to use individual containers. These can range from plastic or paper cups or plastic egg cartons to the commercial peat pots or “jiffy 7’s” you buy at a garden center. Aluminum trays, pie tins, plastic tubs such as margarme or dessert whip can all be used to start several seeds together. Or buy some of the small plastic flats designed for that purpose. The medium used for starting your seeds is important It must hold moisture, but dram well. Above all, it must be free of disease-causing organisms Peatlite mixes (a combination of sphagnum peat moss and perlite) are widely used by professional growers for starting seeds. These are available at most places that sell garden supplies. Another advantage of these mixes is that they usually contain enough fer tilizer to get the seedlings off to a good start. It’s best to wet the medium some tune before sowing seeds, as some of these mixes are slow to absorb moisture Saturate it well. If the container doesn’t have a dram hole, either make one or water carefully so that excess water doesn’t stand in it Now, it’s time to sow the seeds Small seeds like petunia and snapdragons aren’t covered at all but scattered over the surface of your growing medium. Cover larger ones to a depth once or twice their diameter I Sun Fabric Outlet I X 929 Lititz Pike, R.. 501, Lititz, Pa. ♦ ♦ Near Stauffers of Kissel Hill Phone (717) 627 8787 % NEW LINEN & PRINTS $ m AA FOR SPRING & EASTER I *7 7yd Swedish Knits *2.45 Drapery (72") * 1.00 Double Knit. .......* 1.50 Upholstery *2.99 Fleece (110") *2.50 Fleece (60") *1.50 Cotton Prints * 1 . 50 Suede Cloth *2.50 Wool Chalis *1.75 *1.75 Wool Blends Lycra Antron For Bathing Suits & Skating Fabric ... 1 8-*9 ♦ * Mon. to Sat. IOAMto SPM X If individual containers are used, put 2 to 3 seeds in each one Later remove all but the most vigorous seedling. If a tray is used, sow the seeds thinly so plants won't be overcrowded once they sprout. While waiting for the seeds to germinate, it helps to put con tainers inside a plastic bag. This should keep the growing medium from drymg out. Now, find a nice warm spot to germinate the seeds The top of your refrigerator, the back of the stove, on top of a radiator any place where they’ll be reasonably warm A temperature of 70-80 degrees is ideal. As soon as the seeds germinate remove the plastic bag and put containers where they’ll get good bght. A sunny window will do nicely If you don’t have one, grow seedlings under a fluorescent light A shoplight will give excellent results, provided seedlings are placed within about six inches of it. Common vegetables like tomatoes, peppers and eggplants as well as flowers like mangolds, petunias and alyssum should be started 4-6 weeks before they’re to be set outdoors. In this area, this means sowing them anytime from mid-March to early April. Plants sown in trays need to be moved to individual pots as soon as they’re large enough to handle Use the same medium the seeds were started in Seedlings will need to be fer tilized to keep them growing well Soluble liquid fertilizers are best Follow directions on the label as to how much and how often to feed Rates and frequency will vary with the product. Acclimate seedlings to outdoor conditions by placing them in a protected spot outside a couple of days before planting them in the garden With proper care, these homegrown seedlings should cost less and give greater variety than commercially grown transplants. sale Continues’. Just Arrived... QUILT PATCHES! Brand New Prints ... *2.25 ♦ *3.25 ♦ Boys Jerseys *2.50 X Velour 99 c ♦ Special Fabrics 50 c X Solid Knits *1.26 ♦ *l.OO ♦ Chenile *2.26 ♦ Pleated Crepe Crepe Prints Career Apparel - New For ♦ Beautician Smocks, ♦ Waitresses, + Nurses *1.99 £ Vegetable Asparagus* Beans dwarf snap Beans pole snap Beans green shell Beans dry shell Beans dwarf lima Beans pole lima Beets Broccoli early* Broccoli late Brussels sprouts* Cabbage early* Cabbage laic Cabbage Chtru.se Carrots Cauliflower early* Cauliflower laie Celcrs earlv* Celcrv late Cclenat* Chicory Chives Corn swcci (early) Com swcci (Ulc) Cress (upland) Cucumber Dandelion £«pplanl h Endive* Horseradish Kale h Kohlrabi 1 * Leek Lettuce* Musk melon 1 Onion (plants/* Onion sets Onion (for seis> Parslev h Parsnip Peas Pepper* Potato sweet Pumpkin (vine) Radish Rhubarb* Rutabaga SaKifv Spinach Spinach New Zealand Squash winter Squash summer Swiss shard Tomato* Tomato staked* Turnip Watermelon J Exact amounts will vary according to planting distances h Crops that can be started mdiwrs and transplanted to the field Crops that require special treatment fur transplanting For wheel hoe cultivation distance between rows may depend upon type of cultivator to be used f Dates for Central Pennsylvania Seed Plants per 100 feel' 50 75 'A oz 8 oz 4 02 8 oz 8 oz I lb 8 oz '/4 oz Va oz { /i oz '/4 OZ V 4 oz Vi oz 'A OZ Va oz v a OZ Vi 02 V* oz Va 02 'A 02 Jb •4 lb U A oz V oz 'A oz Va oz ''4 02 /4 oz '/* oz '/. oz ‘/4 02 l h 02 02 2 lb 2 02 ■/ oz H oz I lb *4 02 I pk '/. 02 1 OZ 1 OZ W 01 I OZ I 02 1 OZ I OZ I 02 "j 02 ■'4 02 ‘'J 02 '/j 02 We Have The Answers To Your Farm Building Problems! Space between Space between plants m row rows fcct d inches 18 24 1 4 4 8 2 4 \Vs 3 2 3 1" I I \>A \'A 2 4 10 1 IVS 8 10 10 12 2 4 2Vi 3 2Vi 3 I VA 3 6 I 2 3 4 1 6 18 24 1 Vi 2 1 4 I Vi 2 I Vi 2 (W 2 I 2 5 6 IV* 2 crowded 4 12 1 4 2 1 12 24 12 18 36 60 3 4 I Vi 2 1 IVi Specializing In All Types Of Farm and Commercial Buildings! ★ DAIRY BARNS * HORSE BARNS ★ GENERAL ★ GRAIN STORAGE STORAGE if MACHINERY STORAGE ★ DO-IT-YOURSELFERS ★ We Can Furnish You With A Complete Building Materials Package And Blueprints Erect it Yourself and Save Labor Costs! Ready To Serve You Throughout Penna , Maryland, Delaware, And New Jersey l If you need any type of farm or commercial build ing, call collect or send the coupon for more infor mation. RED ROSE BUILDING SYSTEMS PO Box 366 Call Collect Manheim, Pa 717-665-7150 I Please contact me with information on the following LF | FARM BUILDINGS COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS _ DO-IT-YOURSELF BUILDING PACKAGES ® Fill Out And Mail To Rodßoso Building Systems, | PO Box 366, Monhoim. Po. 17545 | Nome | Addresi or RD ■ Town ■ Phono (includo oreo codo) Depth plant mg Approximate field planting inches dates' April Mav I Aug 1 Mav 15 June I Ma\ 15 July I May 15 June 1 Mav 20 June 10 May 20 June 1 Apnl I Julv 10 Apnl 1 15 plants plants June 15 July 10 Mas 15 June 15 Apnl 15 Mav 20 June 15 Julv 1 Julv 15 plants plants V* Vi Apnl 1 JuK 10 Apnl J 15 plants ■4 June 15 Julv 10 Apnl 20-Mav 15 Julv 1 15 plants % * Julv ! 15 Vj !A June 15 plants Apnl Mav I Julv I May 1 Julv } Mav I June 15 I*4 ■4 »/. 1 I'4 % ‘4 Mav 10 June '5 Apnl Sept plants Mav 20-Junc 1 '/4 '* 6 Mas 1 Julv IS Apnl I 15 JuK 1S Aug I Apnl I Aug 1 Apn! 1 IS Apnl I Aug 1 Ma> IS ApnJ I 15 Apnl 1 15 Apnl I IS 1 \h I I 1 * plants Apnl 1 Aug I Apnl IS 10 Apnl Mav 20 June J '/ 4 «/• I V/2 pianis plants Mas 20 Maj 20 June 1 Apnl Aug Apnl July I Apnl I 15 Apnl and August Apnl IS Mav IS June I May 15 June 1 Apnl IS May 20 June 1 Mas 20 June 1 Apnl July 25 Mas 20 June 1 plants plants plants Va V 4 Stato Time to maturity davs 70 80 85 JOO 60 80 60 80 175 200 90-100 60-90 180 SO-200 60 75 lBO 45 75 85 100 110 100 120 90 100 60 90 9S I 10 SO-SO 70 90 ns 125 90-110 25 15 Zip
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers