Starting Seeds
I was raised in a “go play outside” kind of household. Whether I was at my grandparent’s house or home…we were outside unless it was too hot (which rarely happens in the Central Coast of California) or too cold (same). My parents had a vegetable garden most years that I can remember and my grandmother had one every year. She even had my grandpa make her the cutest green house that matched her house. I know she started seeds and collected seeds, but it wasn’t something that I was involved in. My involvement started with Erin and her husband, at Floret. Erin has a few best-selling garden books, a show on Magnolia Network, a YouTube channel and a farm in Washington. She also started breeding plants and selling seeds. Her goal is to get more flowers into the world.
My goal isn’t that global, it’s quite the opposite…I started planting seeds to focus on where my feet are. When things start to feel busy, scary, and/or overwhelming, I find that focusing on where my feet are can help me get my bearings and feel better. The first year, I started them in my dining room, in a little portable greenhouse tray thing. We watered and watched. Watered and watched. Then about a week and a half later, like magic, something sprouted! I know, this is as basic as can be, but every time it happens, it always seems like a miracle.
Last year, I didn’t plant seeds because due to a kitchen remodel, but the coolest thing happened…some “volunteer” plants came up from the previous year’s planting! While it’s not as romantic as starting from seed in my dining room, it was so great to see last year’s labor continue to bear fruit…or flowers in this case. This year, I got a larger pop-up greenhouse, it is actually really similar to a pop-up tent you might get for an outdoor party, but it has a green cover with vents and a zipper door. I got some more shelves and went to town.
Listen, you don’t need to buy any fancy greenhouse equipment, you can direct-sow (meaning plant directly in the soil), once you track your weather and know that you’re past the last frost. Give it a whirl! It’s very grounding…wink wink…see what I did there!? HAHAHAHAHA
Some of my favorite seed sources are:
Floret Flowers - https://www.floretflowers.com/
They only sell their seeds a couple times a year, but they have so many great resources!
Johnny’s Selected - https://www.johnnyseeds.com/
Your local Ace Hardware! Mine is the Central Coast Ace - https://centralcoastace.com/