 Cabin fever is real! It can be especially hard on gardeners who miss the beautiful flowers of summer along with green grass and tree leaves. The goal is to look ahead and plan for the future so if you’re like us, on those cold snowy days you flip though seed catalogs and daydream of what this year’s garden will look like. We are daydreaming of how we can plant earlier so we can create new and exciting pressed flower jewelry!
Many plants need to be seeded in the dead of winter so they can grow into well rooted plants that can be planted outside in early spring. How do you start all these seeds inside before winter releases its cold grip on the landscape? We have used the grow mats for years to start seeds inside. The mats and lights take over our kitchens and living rooms with plugs and cords everywhere-an electrician’s nightmare! The mats can heat unevenly, and even the ones with thermostat controls can run hotter or colder in spots causing poor germination. This year we found a better way to start our seeds, and we hope you may find this useful too!
We came across this video from Market Gardener Institute: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CN-ao9X1KEw
In the video, they show you how to create an 8 foot heated bench that allows for more uniform germination, and you can heat the whole space with just one electrical cord! The bench is customizable allowing you to build it to the size that will best fit your space. Our seed trays are about 2 feet long and 1 foot wide so we built our heated bench 2 feet wide by 14 feet long. This is going to be a game changer for us, now we can germinate 14 trays of seeds only using 1 outlet!
The gutter heat cable is very flexible, easy to install, and it heats up quick! We were amazed at how warm the sand felt after having it plugged in for just a few minutes. We bought the thermostat recommended from the video and attached that to the outside of the bench with the probe in the middle of the bench. The thermostat is important because without it, the gutter tape will just keep heating up and will cook your seedlings. Setting the thermostat to the recommended temperature for your seeds will keep the soil the right temperature for optimum germination.
We are covering our bench with a small tent structure to keep the heat locked in close to the seed trays so the seedlings are warmer than the surrounding air temperature. This will also help to hold he humidity higher and encourage germination.
A few tips and tricks we learned:
-
     Seal the inside seam of the bench with caulk prior to putting the sand inside. The sand can wiggle though any gaps that are between the frame and the plywood.
-
     The bench will be stout once the sand is inside. Make sure you have the bench positioned where you want it before adding the sand.
-
      Foam board is very light. Purchasing it on the windiest day of the year makes for a great adventure.
Spring is just around the corner! Happy seeding and much love from R and D
Â