Sowing Some Seeds - Knowing When The Best Times To Plant Are

When should you plant your seeds? The back of the seed packet tells you the best time to plant the seeds. The planting time varies for each individual plant, depending on where you live. On the packet it will have a tiny map of the U.S.A. and have four different zones with four different colors. Find your area of the map and plant accordingly. If you live in the northern zones, make sure to read the packet to see if you should wait until springtime to plant the plants. The single most common mistake in planting of seeds is planting them too deep. Please follow all of the instructions on the back of the packet for the best results. The packet contains a great deal of garden information about the contents inside. Please make sure to read the instructions. The packet describes certain details about the seeds, planting of the seeds, etc.

SPRING:

When is the best time to start tomato seeds? Unless you are in Zone 10, don't start until about March 1st. Many people start tomatoes too early and that is why the plants don't produce too well or at all. In springtime, no later then April, make sure to loosen and smooth your garden soil. Try these: Calendula, Candytuft, Coreopsis, Larkspur, Nasturtium, Pansy, Shirley Poppy, Snapdragon, Stock, and Sweet Peas. Among the best things to do for hanging baskets are pendula begonias. In a large basket, you can also add many different flowers around the basket. Some types of flowers are ageratum, coleus, lobelia and impatiens. As you hang your basket outdoors for the first time, make sure to water the plants. If your basket has drainage holes, which it should have, it is almost impossible to over-water your hanging plants. Water is quickly evaporated from a basket, so make sure to water the plants. To attract caterpillars you should plant Parsley, Carrot, Queen Anne's Lace, and Angelica. For nectar: Privet, Honeysuckle, flowers of red, orange and bright yellow, Liatris, Asters, Chives, Bee Balm, Butterfly Weed, Lythrum, Thyme, Daylily, Sweet Alyssum, Bachelor Button, Clover, Lavender, Cosmos, Shasta Daisy, Purple Coneflower, Rudbeckia, Butterfly Bush (Buddleia) and Salvia and Stonecrop (sedium).

SUMMER:

Annual herbs such as dill and basil grow quickly in warm weather. It is also ok to start any perennial herbs now and you may be able to start to harvest them in the same year. The following year, the herbs will have grown enough so that you can harvest them for the spring onwards. For some color, scatter zinnia, phlox, baby's breath, cosmos, four o'clock, bachelor button seed, or marigold all around your garden area. If you are interested in perennial flowers, this is a great time to plant those seeds and also plant biennials for next year's bloom. There is still plenty of time to plant, summer squash, watermelon, beans, dill, cilantro, chamomile, New Zealand spinach, Swiss chard, lettuce, okra, bunching onions, basil, and early varieties of sweet corn; summer is also a great time to start seeds indoors or in a cold frame for the upcoming fall crops such as brussels sprouts, cauliflower, or cabbage. Or if you prefer directly in the garden you can plant, beets, lettuce, carrots, turnips, other green and radishes.

FALL:

It depends on where you are in the country, zone-wise. In Zones 9 and 10, plant roses, shrubs, greens, trees, hardy annual flowers, and root crops. However, all Zones can plant spring-flowering bulbs and dormant perennial plants. Indoors, start with seeds of coleus and impatiens, parsley, cactus, oregano, spearmint, and chives. Are the spring-flowering bulbs easy for a new gardener to grow? Yes, they are very easy for anybody to grow. These bulbs have already started to form the next year's bulbs. Make sure to plant in fall, mulch and water the plants.

WINTER:

You can grow herbs indoors at any point during the year. If you start them in the winter you will be able to transfer them in the spring into your garden. Try basil, parsley, chives, thyme, oregano and sage. Make sure the pots are four to six inches in size. The plants will thrive for a year or more indoors. The key to transferring good indoor growing herbs is to make sure they are thick and full before you transfer them.