Spring Has Sprung

Spring has sprung, at least here at Valley View Farm. That is the name of our farmette. The Lettuce seeds I planted on Valentines were up in two days. The same with the seeds planted the 15. The packages said we would have a 7-10 day wait. This is not the first year that happened either. It happened the last two years. My deduction is if you give them a really nice warm damp spot they will sprout. The Styrofoam ice chest with the yogurt makers live up to our expectations every time. There were 3 varieties, of the 10 I planted, that have not sprouted yet. A Buttercrunch from 2006. Focea, a Green butterhead from Johnnies 2007. Valdor, a butterhead from Bountiful Gardens 2007. I see a couple of sprouts so I have faith the rest will come up (If they don't I will replant later 7 days are up with a different variety.) A hint for New gardeners, when your seeds sprout, if you use a peat vermiculite starting mix, Transplant them when they get true leaves. Watering them with some manure tea at this time really helps to give them a vigorous start. Peat and vermiculite do not have any nutrients to help the plants grow. The plants are drawing their sustenance from the seed coat. Even though spring is inside our house, it is a very cold 10 degrees outside the house. The green house is down the hill about 1/8 of a mile. In this valley the temps are another 5-10 degrees below what I have up here at the house. There is a bright sun out so I need to head to the green house to adjust the heaters. It will already be 70 degrees or more in there with this sun.