Local seeds often result in better acclimated plants

Plants are amazing! They need no added nutrients to germinate. Once they sprout, they’ll need fertilizer to grow but inside each little seed is the energy and food required to reproduce another plant. Each seed capsule also retains information of environmental pressures to where it was grown. The seed will be well adapted to cool nights in the mountains of Colorado and to extreme heat and wind in Hawaii. That is why local gardeners will be most successful growing tomato seed harvested from Hawaii rather than a tomato seed harvested from the Western plains or parts of the world that do not have similar weather patterns. Seeds harvested closest to where you live and grow will also be adapted to local pests and diseases.

Many seed distributors exist here in Hawaii. Your local garden center can point you in the right direction or visit the UH Vegetable Seed website, www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/SEED. Some favorites of local gardeners are UH Manoa lettuce, Hawaiian chili pepper, Waimanalo long eggplant and Komohana tomato.

To sprout into healthy plants, seeds need loose, well-drained media, or soil-less soil. The best simple media for seed propagation is 50 percent peat moss and 50 percent perlite. A visit to the garden center will present a dizzying array of garden soils, potting soils and garden composts. Your best choice for sowing seeds is to pick up a bag of potting soil. In addition, pick up a small bag of perlite.

Mix a bit of the perlite with your potting soil to achieve a well-drained medium for seed propagation. Backyard soil should not be used, as it is too high in clay content and will not provide a well-drained environment for seed germination.

Seed-sowing containers can be made by recycling egg cartons or berry containers, or can be purchased at the local garden center. Be sure to poke holes in all recycled containers for drainage. All seed-sowing containers for vegetables or herbs should hold no more than 2 inches of media. Larger containers will hold too much water and will result in rot.

Labeling your sown seed is also very important. Pieces of plastic, such as strips cut from a yogurt container, or old plastic window blinds, make great seed labels. Labels made using a pencil will not fade as fast as those made with permanent marker. But just in case, always keep a garden journal noting the type of seed, the date sown and where it is located in the seed container.

It is important to think about a watering regimen prior to sowing seeds. The best water regimen will result in a consistently humid environment where the media is consistently moist, but not water-logged. Call a local irrigation supply store to discuss options for backyard mist systems or purchase a good hose nozzle with a mist option to water by hand.

Consider how much time you will be away from the house and how you will accommodate a watering schedule while gone. The best option may be to keep containers inside a tray and apply water only to the bottom of the tray so that the media will "wick up" the water when needed. Be sure to dump out water occasionally and allow media to drain well before applying more water.

Plant the right plant in the right place for the most success. Research your plant online to get to know all the growing requirements. When researching, type the plant name plus "extension" or "edu" or "University of Hawaii" to retrieve local research based on unbiased information.

Visit UH Master Gardeners at our "Got a Plant Question Booth" or see a selection of UH vegetable seeds at Second Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon March 14 at the UH Urban Garden Center. You can also catch UH Master Gardeners at local farmers markets or online at www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/uhmg.

There will also be a workshop on anthuriums 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the event. Call 453-6050 to register or visit www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/ougc for more information.

Jayme Grzebik is an Urban Horticulturist with the UH CTAHR Cooperative Extension Service and Statewide Coordinator for the UH Master Gardener Program. She can be reached by emailing grzebik@hawaii.edu.