It’s a Date! Seed Schedules and Personalised Almanacs
Written by: Sumati Shah
“Start 6-8 weeks before last frost,” says the package of alluringly delicious looking vegetables!
Did you know it’s only 98 more sleeps until May?
Me neither, and I’m undecided how I feel about it now that I do.
The point is that the calendar counting finally got me; it’s time for a new approach. Seed selecting and starting revolves around timing, and I don’t like having more moving pieces in an equation than necessary.
Since I’m also attempting to be more organized with planning and keeping notes on my garden’s progress, a seeding schedule and frost date chart is where I ended up, and I’m happy.
Rule of Green Thumbs: Simplify Seeding with a Schedule Chart
- Down the middle, list the week numbers up until your last frost date (“my region last frost date” in a search engine to find that date in your location)
- List calendar dates alongside Wk # for easy reference
- Started on the left and Sprouted on the right
Timing to start seeds is easy to reference by counting the weeks and referencing the dates.
Started seeds get their name & date on the left side. So far, only some windowsill herbs are started. These won’t likely end up in the garden, but I still want to track the germination time.
Sprouted seed names and dates go on the right.
Tracking for the summer garden is something I think is going to help me out when I’m considering whether or not to ‘start over’ if I end up with a crop failure or what to choose if I have an empty space to fill (this never happens – but I do dream!)
Simplified: I’ve got one single quick reference replacing many scattered entries, and the need for a calendar to reference.
Bonus: The result of simplifying is the start of my own personalized Almanac, since I’ll also note the actual last frost date (and have plans for another Growing Season Chart in mind!)
Go Go Green Thumbs!
