ZIP BAG SEED SOWING


The seed packets and labels are matched up and out alphabetically along the top of the bench. Each seed packet is carefully opened and the seed evenly spaced on the cloth before being placed into the zip bag. The label is put in with the printed side up and the bag sealed.

Very small seed and those with duct like properties that would not be easy removed from the clothe if they started to germinate, are placed on an appropriate piece of kitchen roll and then placed on the cloth. At sowing time is will be just a matter of removing the piece of kitchen roll, placing it onto a pot of compost and covering with grit.

When all the seed is sown it is a good idea to go over the bags again and press lightly to ensure that the seed is making good contact with the cloth and will be able to absorb the moisture.

The bags were then placed into a suitable sized lunchbox with the lid secured and put into the salad compartment of the fridge. It is a good idea to check what space is available in the fridge and get a suitable sized box; otherwise you could be cooking your own dinner for a few weeks.

The box will stay in the fridge for about six weeks to convince the seed that winter has come and gone so that they will germinate when taken out. That is the theory anyway or so the experts tell us. An acquaintance of mine from Scotland told me how to germinate lily seed from the Himalayas about six weeks ago. Sow it in peat-based compost, seal it in a plastic bag and put it into the bottom of the hot press for six weeks. Then take it out and leave it in the cold and it will germinate no problem. Well there is a small problem, the six weeks is up now and the seed was germinating like grass when I went to take it out of the hot press. It is the middle of winter and I didn't want it up this early, I have nowhere to put it. If my next batch works like that I will be delighted, but if they start germinating in the fridge I will have to remove them one at a time unto the potting compost with a pair of tweezers.

Tour my garden

MICHAEL J CAMPBELL

The copyright of the article ZIP BAG SEED SOWING in Gardening in Ireland is owned by Michael Campbell. Permission to republish ZIP BAG SEED SOWING in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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