Seedlings, seedlings everywhere - come celebrate spring with us Sat, April 18 or Sat, May 23

The house feels like spring!  We have trays and trays of seedlings sprouting everywhere - all our grow racks are filled and brimming, the window ledges and table tops are covered as we move seed trays around the house to maximize light.  Flowers like zinnias, marigolds, sunflowers are up, cayennes, tomatoes, basils, lettuce starts, kales...We are starting to fill up the grow tunnels outside, and the new greenhouse with seedlings as well, even though it's still under renovation.  Such a hopeful time, starting to work in the soil again, planning the garden and thinking of all the good food to come.

Come on out to celebrate spring with us! - either April 18 at our Seeds, Soil & Sourdough Event from 10-12; or Sat, May 23 at our 13th Annual Organic Seedling Sale (where you will find all these seedlings we are talking about, and more - loads of heirloom tomatoes, plus culinary and medicinal herbs, flowers and much more).

Seeds, Soil & Sourdough Event - April 18 from 10-12 noon

 

AT LITTLE CITY FARM, 508 dUKE sT w, kITCHENER

Sat, April 18 from 10-12 noon

an earth-day celebration!

 Drop by to find:

Seedballs: make your own clay seedballs to attract pollinators
Seeds: certified organic non-GMO seeds for sale to get your garden started!
Soil: bags of certified organic potting soil for sale for all your seedlings 
Seedling Tips: helpful advice on starting seedlings, planting charts

Sourdough: fresh sourdough bread, wood-fired baking demos
Soap: natural handmade herbal soaps & salves available
SAVOURY WOOD-FIRED CREPES: UNIQUE VEGGIE CREPES made over a wood fire!

Please try to walk or bike here

More info: www.littlecityfarm.ca

Seed Planting Guide

Seed Planting Guide

Each year around this time we pull out our big box of seeds and the garden binder that holds our planting guide and notes from last year.  We map out the new garden plan, get soil and trays ready, and start our first seeds!   Here is the planting guide we use, based on our zone 5-6 in southern Ontario.
 
PLANTING GUIDE (based on frost-free date of May 24):
FEBRUARY (the greens listed here can continue to be planted throughout the growing season of course)

Start lettuce, chard, other greens in greenhouse or in flats indoors (to be planted out to greenhouse). Start selected medicinal and culinary herbs by middle of February. Some take 6-8 weeks to germinate!

10 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. March 15)
Start seeds of celery, eggplant, leeks, onion, pepper and flowers like impatiens, lobelia, verbena and perennials indoors.

8 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. March 29)
Start seeds of early head lettuce and flowers like begonia, coleus, nicotiana, petunia and salvia indoors.

7 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. April 5)
Start seeds of tomatoes, hot peppers, and early basil indoors.

6 WEEKS TO LAST FROST(aprox. April 12)
Start seeds of early left lettuce, early cabbages including cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kohlrabi and kale, and small seeded annuals indoors. DIRECT SEED broad beans, carrots, peas, spinach, leaf lettuce, turnips, dill, parsley, and hardy flowers such as alyssum, candytuft, pansies, poppies, snapdragons, stocks, sunflowers and sweet peas. Plant onion sets or transplant onion seedlings outdoors.

4 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. April 26)
Start melon seeds indoors. If desired, start seeds of late basil, cucumber, squash, pumpkin, large-seeded annuals, and flowering vines indoors in peat pots. DIRECT SEED radishes, beets, cabbages, chard, head lettuce, and flowers such as hollyhock, and mallow. Plant potato eyes and transplant seedlings of early cabbages, except cauliflower.

2 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. May 10)
DIRECT SEED corn, tender bulbs such as glads, and annual vines such as morning glory. Transplant early lettuce seedlings.

WEEK OF LAST FROST (aprox. May 17-24)
Around the last frost date you can finally direct seed beans, cauliflower, cucumber, squashes, heat-loving flowers such as zinnias, marigold, and lavatera. Transplant your tomatoes. If you've got them, transplant cauliflower, squash and cucumber seedlings.

1-2 WEEKS AFTER FROST (aprox. May 31-June 7)
Wait for a couple of weeks after the last frost before direct seedling lima beans, soybeans, melons and herbs such as basil, summer savory and sweet marjoram. Transplant celery, melon, peppers, eggplant seedlings when the night temperatures stay well above 10 degrees C. Plant sweet potato slips. Start second crop of kale seedlings, and reseed spinach and peas for second crop.

Save the date! Organic Seedling Sale at Little City Farm May 24 from 9 am-12 noon

Seed Planting Guide

Seed Planting Guide

Each year around this time we pull out our big box of seeds and the garden binder that holds our planting guide and notes from last year.  We map out the new garden plan, get soil and trays ready, and start our first seeds!   Here is the planting guide we use, based on our zone 5-6 in southern Ontario.
 
PLANTING GUIDE (based on frost-free date of May 24):
FEBRUARY (the greens listed here can continue to be planted throughout the growing season of course)

Start lettuce, chard, other greens in greenhouse or in flats indoors (to be planted out to greenhouse). Start selected medicinal and culinary herbs by middle of February. Some take 6-8 weeks to germinate!

10 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. March 15)
Start seeds of celery, eggplant, leeks, onion, pepper and flowers like impatiens, lobelia, verbena and perennials indoors.

8 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. March 29)
Start seeds of early head lettuce and flowers like begonia, coleus, nicotiana, petunia and salvia indoors.

7 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. April 5)
Start seeds of tomatoes, hot peppers, and early basil indoors.

6 WEEKS TO LAST FROST(aprox. April 12)
Start seeds of early left lettuce, early cabbages including cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kohlrabi and kale, and small seeded annuals indoors. DIRECT SEED broad beans, carrots, peas, spinach, leaf lettuce, turnips, dill, parsley, and hardy flowers such as alyssum, candytuft, pansies, poppies, snapdragons, stocks, sunflowers and sweet peas. Plant onion sets or transplant onion seedlings outdoors.

4 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. April 26)
Start melon seeds indoors. If desired, start seeds of late basil, cucumber, squash, pumpkin, large-seeded annuals, and flowering vines indoors in peat pots. DIRECT SEED radishes, beets, cabbages, chard, head lettuce, and flowers such as hollyhock, and mallow. Plant potato eyes and transplant seedlings of early cabbages, except cauliflower.

2 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. May 10)
DIRECT SEED corn, tender bulbs such as glads, and annual vines such as morning glory. Transplant early lettuce seedlings.

WEEK OF LAST FROST (aprox. May 17-24)
Around the last frost date you can finally direct seed beans, cauliflower, cucumber, squashes, heat-loving flowers such as zinnias, marigold, and lavatera. Transplant your tomatoes. If you've got them, transplant cauliflower, squash and cucumber seedlings.

1-2 WEEKS AFTER FROST (aprox. May 31-June 7)
Wait for a couple of weeks after the last frost before direct seedling lima beans, soybeans, melons and herbs such as basil, summer savory and sweet marjoram. Transplant celery, melon, peppers, eggplant seedlings when the night temperatures stay well above 10 degrees C. Plant sweet potato slips. Start second crop of kale seedlings, and reseed spinach and peas for second crop.

Seedlings growing, spring in the air

Our house and greenhouse are filling up with vibrant happy young seedlings, getting ready for our annual sale on May 18.  We have six rows of indoor grow lights to start the seedlings that need a head start, and then move everything into our passive solar greenhouse for transplanting.  Oh, there is a lot of transplanting that still needs to happen in the next few weeks!  This weekend it's time to start the last indoor seedlings - zucchini, squashes, melons.  With all the snow and cold rainy weather the hot weather crops (tomatoes, eggplants, peppers) are growing slowly in the unheated greenhouse, but we are hopeful the warmer weather is coming.  They will certainly be hardy seedlings this year.

As part of our weekly kids nature group, we had a lovely hike at a nearby woods today.  The kids dipped their boots into the pond, and we heard an unbelievably loud rukus of frogs mating, so we know that spring is really here.

First spring garden shoots!

Finally!  There are new shoots and greens, buds and leaves starting to come up in the garden.  In the yard we see the snowdrops, tulips, forsythia buds, crocuses...in the garden there are garlic greens, chives, rhubarb, herbs greening up, and berry buds peeking from the moist cool soil..in the greenhouse we have our fresh young lettuce coming up quickly.  We can hear all the spring birds back, and have seen pairs of mourning doves, starlings, cardinals, sparrows, robins, downy woodpeckers, and bluejays frequenting our yard looking for nesting materials.  Such a hopeful time of anticipation...

April at the homestead

Such a busy time!  New hungry baby chicks to care for, rows and rows of seedlings to keep watered, first seeds to plant outdoors, the last three of our spring homesteading workshops to host this month, preparations for the May Seedling Sale, and we are still tapping our trees (hoping to have our big sugaring day next weekend!).  We love spring around here, but it sure is a different pace than the winter months.

Save the date - our annual Seedling Sale is coming on May 18th

Seed Planting Guide

Each year around this time we pull out our big box of seeds and the garden binder that holds our planting guide and notes from last year.  We map out the new garden plan, get soil and trays ready, and start our first seeds!   Here is the planting guide we use, based on our zone 5-6 in southern Ontario.
 
PLANTING GUIDE (based on frost-free date of May 24):
FEBRUARY (the greens listed here can continue to be planted throughout the growing season of course)

Start lettuce, chard, other greens in greenhouse or in flats indoors (to be planted out to greenhouse). Start selected medicinal and culinary herbs by middle of February. Some take 6-8 weeks to germinate!

10 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. March 15)
Start seeds of celery, eggplant, leeks, onion, pepper and flowers like impatiens, lobelia, verbena and perennials indoors.

8 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. March 29)
Start seeds of early head lettuce and flowers like begonia, coleus, nicotiana, petunia and salvia indoors.

7 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. April 5)
Start seeds of tomatoes, hot peppers, and early basil indoors.

6 WEEKS TO LAST FROST(aprox. April 12)
Start seeds of early left lettuce, early cabbages including cauliflower, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kohlrabi and kale, and small seeded annuals indoors. DIRECT SEED broad beans, carrots, peas, spinach, leaf lettuce, turnips, dill, parsley, and hardy flowers such as alyssum, candytuft, pansies, poppies, snapdragons, stocks, sunflowers and sweet peas. Plant onion sets or transplant onion seedlings outdoors.

4 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. April 26)
Start melon seeds indoors. If desired, start seeds of late basil, cucumber, squash, pumpkin, large-seeded annuals, and flowering vines indoors in peat pots. DIRECT SEED radishes, beets, cabbages, chard, head lettuce, and flowers such as godetia, hollyhock, and mallow. Plant potato eyes and transplant seedlings of early cabbages, except cauliflower.

2 WEEKS TO LAST FROST (aprox. May 10)
DIRECT SEED corn, tender bulbs such as glads, and annual vines such as morning glory. Transplant early lettuce seedlings.

WEEK OF LAST FROST (aprox. May 17-24)
Around the last frost date you can finally direct seed beans, cauliflower, cucumber, squashes, heat-loving flowers such as zinnias, marigold, and lavatera. Transplant your tomaotes. If you've got them, transplant cauliflower, squash and cucumber seedlings.

1-2 WEEKS AFTER FROST (aprox. May 31-June 7)
Wait for a couple of weeks after the last frost before direct seedling lima benas, soybeans, melons and herbs such as basil, summer savory and sweet marjoram. Transplant celery, melon, peppers, eggplant seedlings when the night temperatures stay well above 10 degrees C. Plant sweet potato slips. Start second crop of kale seedlings, and reseed spinach and peas for second crop.

Seed Starting Workshop Confirmed, Feb 23!

We're excited to announce that our seed starting workshop is confirmed for Sat, Feb 23.  Local organic farmer Angie Koch from Fertile Ground CSA will be here again to lead this excellent workshop.  Learn to grow your own healthy hardy seedlings for your garden.  Registration is online here.
 
SAT, FEB 23 from 1-3 pm - SEED STARTING
Cost: $25 (pre-registration required)
with Angie Koch, from Fertile Ground CSA. Limited to 12 participants.
It’s time to start garden seedlings! Join well-known local organic farmer, Angie Koch, to learn the basics of starting vegetables from seed including: which to start as seedlings inside and which to direct seed outdoors; when to start various vegetables; soil mixes and seedling supplies; troubleshooting problems and diseases. This workshop is geared toward beginners, or those who have dabbled in seed starting but need some tips to make their growing more successful!

This workshop will be held at Little City Farm, 508 Duke St W, Kitchener.  Please register online or email info@littlecityfarm.ca

In the winter garden

There's still loads of snow outside, but on the sunny days our little grow tunnel sure heats up.  The lettuce and winter greens are growing well, and we've enjoyed a few small salads.  Come March the warmer weather and longer sunlight will give these greens an extra push and we'll hopefully have a full salad bed shortly.  For now, it's a fun place to play and nibble...

Seedling Sale Extraveganza!!!

Thanks to everyone who came out to our 10th annual Seedling Sale this past Saturday!  We had a great time and hope you did too...lovely warm sunny weather, lively banjo, fiddle & guitar music, rows and rows of beautiful seedlings, tasty baked treats, many smiling faces of community members...  A very special thank you to all our hard-working vendors, volunteers and musicians who made this event the success it was.