Gardener gets an early start on spring by planting seeds

Evans resident Betty Crowther has gotten a jump on fellow gardeners by starting her planting earlier than usual.

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"I have already started some seeds," said Crowther. "I don't usually start this early."

Crowther planted a few seeds in December in hopes of getting an early start on her spring garden.

"It's an experiment, actually," said Crowther. "I wanted to try a few things that I could put in the garden early since I tentatively have some guests coming from England. I wanted to have some color in the garden when they arrived."

When she was planning which seeds to start, Crowther phoned a local garden center and was told that under a new regulation, seeds for this year would not be available until after Jan. 1.

Because she wanted to sow some varieties before the first of the year, Crowther went online and was able to purchase the seeds she wanted.

Among the seeds Crowther planted were calendular and cornflowers. Because the plants are hard to find in nurseries, she knew she would have to start them as seeds if she wanted them in her garden this spring.

"I also missed the window to sow some cool-season annuals like foxgloves and sweet peas, partly because I still had tropical flowers blooming as late as early December in the areas I needed to sow them," she said. "Annuals, such as snapdragons and alyssum, are also so easy and much cheaper to grow from seed than buying six-packs that I thought I might as well give them a try, too."

While Crowther doesn't know whether her early start will prove fruitful, she's hoping to be able to put seedlings out in March.

And though most of her gardening counterparts are just now planning what they are going to sow, Crowther said she's taking her early start as an experiment and will use her experience for future seed sowing.

For those who are undecided on when to sow seeds, Crowther suggests following the directions on the seed packets regarding the germination period. She said she typically adds a few weeks to what the directions indicate.

"There is no hard and fast rule on sowing seeds," said Crowther, adding that seed sowing is much more economical than purchasing packs of annuals in the store.