Consider planting your spring garden now

Of course, we are in the dead of winter with its cold, snow and ice. But, it is time to plant a spring garden. And it’s okay to get your hands in the soil at this time of year. Let us explain.

Many seeds need at least 90 days of cold to germinate. Instead of using your refrigerator to cold stratify your seeds during fall and winter (we mean, do you really have the refrigerator room for stratifying?), plant those seeds outside.

Ideally, start as early as November, but since we are now well into January 2021, go ahead and set up the planting containers. You will need the following:

· Clear plastic jugs or translucent milk jugs without caps

· A sharp knife

· A permanent marker and plastic tags

· Duct tape (any color you want)

· Planting or potting soil

You have two choices for planting the seeds:

From now to March, you can sow seeds and add water to add to the prepared jugs according to the sow time one list (at the end of this article) of sowing at different times during this multi-month period.

Or, you can sow all the seeds now, per sow time two. Just remember to water occasionally during the winter. If you want to be done with one preparation, this is it and you still get your hands in the soil long before spring. What a bonus!

Prepare the planters you want for your garden. Set them aside until you are ready to sow the seeds.

· Make four slits at the bottom of the jug for drainage.

· Cut around the jug at least four inches from the bottom, but do not sever the handle. The handle will be the hinge to open and close the planter.

· Put three inches of soil in the jug. Soil with a time-release fertilizer is okay. Don’t pack down the soil.

Sowing the seed is easy. The smaller the seed, the more you can sow in the jug.

· Water the soil so it is damp, not dripping wet.

· Scatter wildflower seed on top, add a thin soil layer, pat soil gently to stick to the seed. Plant four to nine tree or shrub seeds equidistant apart in the jug. With flowering Japanese quince seed, I sow nine seeds in a tic-tac-toe pattern. If you sow linden seeds, probably four seeds placed equidistant apart will do.

· Write name of the plant seed on a plastic tag. Stick in soil, inside the jug, by the hinge/handle.

· Put one strip of duct tape (about three to four inches long) vertically over each seam on the three cut sides of the jug to keep the top half of the jug from flapping in the winter winds.

· Take off the cap for ventilation.

Set the jugs in the garden. Let the rain blow, watch the snow drift down, let the sleet build up. Oh, and protect the jugs from the wind. You can place them in plastic boxes that have drainage slits in the bottom or place them between heaped rows of garden soil or between raised beds to keep winter winds from tipping them over.

Sow time one: If you choose to space out the sowing between now and March, then set out the jugs of winter-sown seeds based on how many cold days the seeds need and count back from the last frost date for your area. In Moses Lake, that is between April 15 and May 1. Err on the side of caution – use the latest date of last frost – and, bingo, you have the date to set out the jugs.

· Anytime after Dec. 21 (winter solstice), set out the tree, shrub and woody vine seeds.

· Starting in late January, set out the jugs of perennial and biennial seeds.

· In mid-February or early March, set out the jugs of cold-hardy veggie seeds, hardy perennials and annuals.

· Early in March, set out jugs of frost-intolerant seeds: tender annuals, tomatoes, squash, gourds, beans.

· Check occasionally during the winter that the soil is moist, but not wet. Replace duct tape strips as needed.

· After the last frost date has passed, set out the seedlings with the rest of your garden plants. Clean and save the jugs for the next winter sowing.

Sow time two: If you choose to set out all the seeds at one time, you get the delight of the preparation as well as the enjoyment of checking on the seeds during the winter when you venture forth to give the jugs a bit of water to keep the soil slightly damp – unless rain and snow have done that for you. Yes, leaving the cap off the milk jugs will allow sufficient moisture (rain or snow) to find its way into the jug to keep the soil damp.

After the last frost date, set out the seedlings and watch them grow and grow!

For gardening questions contact the WSU Grant-Adams Master Gardeners at the WSU Grant-Adams Extension office at 754-2011 ext 4313. Our online reference services are available at http://ext100.wsu.edu/grant-adams/gardening/. From there, go to ga.mgvolunteers@ad.wsu.edu to contact one of the many Master Gardeners on call 24/7 year-round to answer gardening questions.