Time to Plant: Broccoli, lettuce, fava bean seeds

September 26, 2009

Greens

Now that temperatures have started to dip, especially at night, and the rain is falling (will it ever stop??? lol) you can go ahead and start seeds of cole crops directly in the garden. Broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, collard greens, mustard greens, kale and cauliflower. You can also direct seed fava beans, spinach, lettuce, Swiss chard, sorrel and carrots. All of these seeds are going to be small, with Swiss chard and spinach being the largest of the greens, so don't bury them too deep. No more than a quarter of an inch deep. Fava beans are planted about 1-inch deep. Keep the soil surface moist for 7 to 10 days until germination. Remember, lettuce seeds need light to germinate so you will not bury the seeds under the soil. Simply sprinkle them onto the soil surface and pat them down. Because they have no soil cover, you'll have to take extra care that they stay moist until germination. You'll need to thin the seedlings after they emerge so that you don't have too many plants too close together. You can mix an organic veggie food into the soil before you plant your seeds.

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