And Then There Were Many

"One for the rock, one for the crow,

One to die, and one to grow."

- English saying

Heck, I have enough seedlings for the rock, the crow, and for the entire neighorhood to grow. My mother has always recommended "everything in moderation," but I've always been a bit of a rebel.

This past week I've been thinning out my little seedlings, getting many into larger pots of their own. And what I've realized? I sowed a BOAT LOAD of seeds! A good majority of them have germinated (see below), which, hey, kudos to Annie's for sending healthy seeds, and to myself for providing them the right conditions for success. They've now taken over my house ... which is good and bad.

I've quite liked caring for my heirloom seedlings. I move them around to find sunshine each day, take them outside on nice days, bring them back in, water them, gaze at and admire them ... I nurture them. I'd rather have a new baby (okay, that's a ridiculous understatement) or a puppy, or both, but for now this will have to do. The bad is that they've taken over my house. I'm beginning to tire of the indoor follow-the-sunshine dance, and the daily vacuuming of the small remnants of soil found on windowsills and floors. I'm now officially ready to get them outside and into the ground. Another week or two are needed yet, I know, so I'm practicing patience.

So how many seedlings do I actually have?

• Filderkraut Cabbage: sowed 180 seeds; 146 seeds germinated (81% success rate)
• Red Rock Cabbage: sowed 150 seeds; 120 seeds germinated (80% success rate)
• Long Island Brussels Sprouts: sowed 200 seeds; 174 seeds germinated (87% success rate)
• Lacinato Kale: sowed 100 seeds; 97 seeds germinted (97% success rate)
• King of the North Bell Pepper: sowed 25 seeds; 25 seeds germinated (100% success rate)
• Bianco di Maggio Onion: sowed 100 seeds; 95 seeds germinated (95% success rate)
• Sugar Baby Watermelon: sowed 25 seeds; 21 seeds germinated (84% success rate)
• Lettuce blend: sowed 100 seeds; these are hard to measure, but they are growing like mad (I'll call them 100% successful)
• Amish Snap Peas: sowed 80 seeds; 80 seeds germinated (100% success rate)

That makes 858 individual seedlings...so far. I haven't even begun to direct-seed my carrots, spinach, kohlrabi, and herbs yet. Zoinks! Have I mentioned how small my yard is?

Then there are my tomatoes...these haven't had as much success. I believe this was my fault, though. I'll post separately about that.

In the meantime, it's due time to start sharing the many.