Last year was my first year starting plants from seed. I didn’t have a grow light, I didn’t buy seed trays, I tried my hand with the direct sow method in my new garden planters and had mixed success. Direct sowing also meant that I started my growing season later than I really should have. …Read More about Seed Starting Guide
Steader Lessons
Seed Starting Mix
I started my seeds about a month ago because, well, I can. Living in Arizona means I can kinda get started whenever I want as long as we don’t have an unusual late-season cold snap. Even then, it’s not like we’ll have below zero temps down here in the Valley of the Sun. Yeah, it’s …Read More about Seed Starting Mix
Planning on Paper: Identifying microclimates
Where you live is defined by climate but where you plant certain varieties of vegetables or fruit trees is often dictated by microclimates. I live in northern Wyoming. Our growing season is short compared to Dave’s in Arizona and my elevation of 4600+ ft is another challenge. I live at the base of the Big …Read More about Planning on Paper: Identifying microclimates
Planning on Paper: The Site Study
The Site Study was something that Dave continually mentioned, referenced, or alluded to through the process of creating the base plan. It seemed that the Site Study was rather important. The Base Plan is the working document, the reference we will use moving forward, and the Site Study is yet another layer of information and …Read More about Planning on Paper: The Site Study
Home Fermentation Q&A with The Fermentistas
I knew that fermentation played a critical role in a lot of our oldest foods and beverages. Beer, bread, wine, cheese are all staples of most diets around the world and have origins that go way back in our history…they are all also products of fermentation. That’s about as far as my knowledge and experience …Read More about Home Fermentation Q&A with The Fermentistas
Planning on Paper: Creating your Base Plan
Everything I’ve read, the people I’ve talked with, and the voice inside my head all say that a written base plan is worth its weight in gold. The handful of hours spent planning your garden – and the greater landscape of your property – on paper will insure that you avoid wasting countless hours later …Read More about Planning on Paper: Creating your Base Plan
Testing Your Old Seed
Last month I started getting ready for the new planting season. We’re pretty lucky here in Arizona, things get started pretty early and I wasn’t going to waste a minute of potential growing time. I did maintenance on all the planting beds, added new compost and soil conditioners, added new mulch and cleaned out any …Read More about Testing Your Old Seed
How to Read Your Seed Packets
This is my second year purchasing seed for the garden. Last year I was pretty disorganized, buying seed at whim from random sources and never really paying attention to anything but the plant variety. Results were about as haphazard as my selection technique. This year I’ve made a concerted effort to be more responsible about …Read More about How to Read Your Seed Packets
Seed Selection Q&A
It’s a truly rewarding experience to start your garden from seed. It’s one of the purest forms of self-reliance and holds the promise of what is possible. But how do you decide what to grow? There are numerous vegetables to consider, just as many seed catalogs to choose from, and countless varieties to try. The …Read More about Seed Selection Q&A