While the weather outside may still be frightful, now is the time to start planning for a summer garden. Planting seeds indoors now can extend their growing season up to four to six weeks.
In order to be ready for a fully bloomed garden, get a jump start on planting. Your preparations now can pay off handsomely come spring and even early summer. Whether you want to grow vegetables, herbs or flowers, starting them from seed means that immediately following the last frost, they can be transplanted outside.
Here are three seed packets to plant indoors now so you are ready when spring arrives.
Annual flowers
Nothing is better than large splashes of color to bring out the beauty of a spring landscape. In order to maximize the effectiveness of annual flowers, start them from seed. Four to six weeks before the end of the average first frost in your area, begin your first grouping of seeds indoors. By the time the weather breaks and you move them outdoors, they’ll be in bloom and ready to enjoy.
Zinnias, sunflowers and snapdragons are tall flowers with large blooms, which are perfect for a summer cutting garden. For fantastic ground cover, begin a packet of seeds of impatiens, pansies and petunias. A wide assortment of flowering plants can be chosen as seed packets to highlight your garden’s personality – and since they are annual, you can change your landscape’s “look” each season without costly transplanting.
Leafy vegetables
Salads greens, broccoli and spinach are some of the very first seedlings that can be moved outdoors. Once they are big enough to tough out the weather, seedlings can even sustain minor frost.
In order to get a natural salad garden growing as quickly as possible, begin seeds now for maximum growth. Should you decide to move these greens outdoors too early, consider adding a frost blanket (which can be bought at most garden stores) in case of a last minute snowstorm or heavier frost.
Herbs
In order to be viable and productive members of any garden, herbs need to be introduced outside well past a season’s last frost. Consider planting fragile herbs such as chives, basil and dill from seed indoors.
Many herbs are considered container plants, so place them in well drained potting soil in medium sized pots. As the weather warms, the containers may be moved outside during hotter months. Herbs are versatile and can continue to produce even after several seasons if properly maintained.
For questions or issues relating to planting and seed starting tips, contact one of our professionals at Absolute Landscape and Turf Services. They can walk you through any equipment needs and issues you may have before planting.