Proper Planting of Seeds and “Starts”

Try Starting Plants from Seeds

Sustainable Gardening: Beets and Carrots

Home Garden Series: Transplants

Louisiana Vegetable Planting Guide

How to properly plant seeds or transplant vegetables from paper cups or pots is an important step when gardening. No matter where you choose to plant your seeds, if seeds are planted too deeply in the soil, they might not successfully sprout, and their first leaf may not make it to the surface soon enough to begin making its own food through photosynthesis. Seeds carry their own initial amount of food for the young seedling – much like the yolk in a chicken’s egg! So, if you intend to start your plants from seeds, it is important to plant them properly spaced and at the proper depth. If they are too close together, once they grow up, the mature plants will be crowded and will compete for water, nutrients and even sunlight with their ‘neighbors’. The seed packet or simple instructions that often come along with plants should give you plenty of information. If you have questions, your local extension agent can certainly be a good resource for you. This section contains a few articles that demonstrate proper seed planting and even the planting of transplants.

A few resources in this section (Proper Planting of Seeds and "Starts"):

• The LSU AgCenter’s article “Try Starting Plants from Seeds” This article from Richard Bogren puts gardeners in the mindset of starting seeds. He gives ideas about seed starting containers and goes over thinning out young transplants after they’ve sprouted.
• The LSU AgCenter’s Sustainable School & Home Gardening article: “Beets and Carrots” This article shows gardeners how to grow beets and carrots, two crops often growing by direct seeding. It also informs gardeners about the importance of fertilizing and watering the crops and gives several variety choices for beets and carrots. Readers will learn when to harvest and the best way to store the root crops after harvesting.
• The LSU AgCenter’s Home Garden Series article, “Growing Transplants” In this article, many of the popular transplant crops are listed and the times required for each to sprout and grow up to a transplantable size are provided. Container and soil choices are discussed as well as the need to ‘harden off’ of your seedlings.
• The LSU AgCenter’s Vegetable Planting Guide is a great resource for gardeners because it details the spring and fall planting dates for many crops.