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Tips from Olle Garden Bed: How To Direct Seed Your Vegetable Garden

Every winter, make a plan for which veggies, flowers and herbs you’re going to start from seed throughout the growing season. Some of them get a head start indoors, while others I wait until the timing is right for direct seeding outside. The following content also has some reference value for raised garden beds.

Every winter, I make a plan for which vegetables, flowers and herbs I will grow from seed throughout the growing season. Some of them are one step ahead indoors, while others wait until the time is right for direct seeding outdoors. I also have a small list of seeds for continuous planting in the summer after certain crops like garlic and peas. In this article, I'll share tips on direct seeding and explain which crops benefit from starting outdoors.

garden beds

What is direct seeding?

Direct seeding, or direct seeding, is when you plant seeds in your garden, rather than starting your seeds indoors under a light or a sunny window, or buying seedlings at a nursery. There are several different crops that benefit from direct seeding. Some cool-season crops, especially root vegetables, do not perform well when transplanted, and some crops that prefer warm soil before planting, such as zucchini and melon, can be sown outdoors when the time is right.

Direct sowing: Tips for sowing seeds in the garden

By: Tara Nolan Reviews (2)

Every winter, I make a plan for which vegetables, flowers and herbs I will grow from seed throughout the growing season. Some of them are one step ahead indoors, while others wait until the time is right for direct seeding outdoors. I also have a small list of seeds for continuous planting in the summer after certain crops like garlic and peas. In this article, I'll share tips on direct seeding and explain which crops benefit from starting outdoors.

What is direct seeding?

Direct seeding, or direct seeding, is when you plant seeds in your garden, rather than starting your seeds indoors under a light or a sunny window, or buying seedlings at a nursery. There are several different crops that benefit from direct seeding. Some cool-season crops, especially root vegetables, do not perform well when transplanted, and some crops that prefer warm soil before planting, such as zucchini and melon, can be sown outdoors when the time is right.
raised garden bed
Direct sowing beans

For some warm-weather vegetables, such as beans, sow after the frost-free date in your area and after the soil has warmed.

In colder climates like mine, some plants, like tomatoes, eggplants and peppers, need to be a step ahead indoors. While some seeds don't mind being sown indoors and outdoors, others will perform better if sown directly in the ground. Some vegetables and herbs may experience transplant shock with disturbed roots when they are pulled from the cell mass and planted in the garden. Others, like dill, develop long taproots, so they won't be disturbed once the seeds sprout.

Prepare your garden

Before tearing apart these seed packets, you'll need to do some field preparation. You don't want to sow seeds in hard soil. You want the soil to be loose and workable. It is a good idea to amend the soil with compost before planting. You can add organics in fall or spring. Be sure to remove all weeds before adding soil amendments.

Sow seeds in the garden

Get a tray to hold your seeds, markers, labels, and more. It also catches any spilled seeds so they don't go to waste. Read each seed packet carefully. It should explain everything that various plants need. For seeds that can be grown indoors and outdoors, read the recommendations and schedule for both options. If the seeds should simply be sown directly outdoors, that's what the instructions will say. Check the frost-free dates in your area so you know whether the seeds you choose are sown before or after.
raised garden bed
There are also different methods of sowing. Some seeds can be broadcast or scattered. This is what I do with poppy seeds. They are so small that it is easier to shake the pack gently around the garden where you wish to grow them than to grow them individually.

For some seeds, you can simply take the tip of a baking sheet or trowel and create a narrow trench or trench in the soil to your desired depth. After planting, all you need to do is rub the soil lightly through the hole.

Some seeds, such as zucchini, squash, and squash, benefit from being planted in low mounds. Seed packs will provide spacing details.

Direct seed attachment

There are tools that make direct seeding easier. There are sowing squares, a template that you place on the garden soil. Spaced holes of suitable diameter indicate where to sow. I have a ruler like this one that has measurements that show how far to plant. You simply place it in the garden and place the seeds in the appropriate pre-formed holes. For tiny seeds, there are special planter tools that distribute small seeds evenly.

After planting a row, you'll want to add a plant tag to the end of the row so you can remember what you've planted. I use plastic tags that you can write on with a marker. There are also some plastic lids, like little storage boxes. They allow you to put seed packets or tags in them and keep them dry.

After planting a row, you'll want to add a plant tag to the end of the row so you can remember what you've planted. I use plastic tags that you can write on with a marker. There are also some plastic lids, like little storage boxes. They allow you to put seed packets or tags in them and keep them dry.

When watering, you need to spray very gently so you don't wash off all the seeds. You can use a watering can with a rain spout or a gentle setting on a hose nozzle.

Seeds sown directly by nature

When plants are sown, you can pull them out to make room for another crop, or collect seeds before removing the plants. You can also let seeds fall into the garden. This usually results in more plants. I've encountered this with kale, oregano, cilantro and dill, as well as annuals like cosmos. I also have seeds for warm season crops like tomatoes and tomatoes, and the following year I let the fruit break down in the soil in the winter instead of putting them in the fall.
raised garden bed
Vegetable Crops for Direct Planting List

Zucchini
Squash: Spaghetti squash, round squash, pumpkins
Beets
Turnips
Corn
Peas
Lettuces
Carrots
Melons
Radishes
Beans: (Lima beans, bush and pole beans)

Direct-seeded annuals

Beans: (Lima beans, bush and pole beans)
Zucchini
Squash: Spaghetti squash, round squash, pumpkins
Beets
Turnips
Corn
Peas
Lettuces
Carrots
Melons
Radishes

Herbs for Guiding Sows

Dill
Basil (can start indoors)
Coriander

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