Seed Starting - Tomatillos and Ground Cherries

Back on March 7th I was super excited, because I ordered a bunch of seeds from the Territorial Seed Company for starting indoors (btw, Territorial Seed is my favorite seed catalog, even though they're in the Pacific Northwest and I'm in Massachusetts. Hands down the most user friendly catalog I've encountered, and their seed varieties seem to do well here. Similar enough climate I guess?). That same day I also ordered this very awesome grow-light set up from Park Seed:

Park Seed's website listed it as "ready to ship", but apparently that was a lie, because here we are on March 25th, and it's still back ordered. Grrrr. So I today I canceled the order. I need to start my seeds, STAT.  So I ran to my local hardware store and got some seed starting mix and a tray. I already own a seedling heat mat, and have lots of little peat pots for filling with the seed starter. I'm not sure *what* I'm going to do about a grow light.  I started seeds indoors for the first time two years ago without a  light. I just kept the tray in the sunshine in the window. Most of the tomatoes and peppers didn't fare too well, but I did end up with some thriving grape tomatoes.

I could make my *own* grow light. There are lots of easy instructions out there online. This the best tutorial I've come across. I've mostly been befuddled by how to *hang* the darn thing. I'd like to keep the seedlings on top of a bookshelf in my home office. I'm thinking I might be able to copy the grow light stand in the above pic using materials from Home Depot? I may just give it a try. You lucky readers will get to hear all about it!

I usually just buy seedlings from local nurseries, but this year I want to grow tomatillos and ground cherries - which are hard ( and in the case of ground cherries impossible?) to find around here. I happened across a tomatillo seedling two years ago at the nursery down the street. I bought it on a whim, and it took off like gangbusters! By the end of the summer that one plant had produced at least 100 tomatillos. We put them in casseroles and made salsa verde. I think what I loved most was the way the leaves smelled like a spicy queso sauce. Yum.

I checked high and low for another tomatillo plant last year, and came up empty, dang it. I can't take that chance this year. I *must* have my tomatillos. So seeds it is. Territorial Seed has ground cherries on the same page as their tomatillo seeds. They looked crazy intriguing, so I'm now obsessed with trying to grow them too. They look a lot like tomatillos, but they're smaller and rosier, and instead of zesty they're sweet like real cherries. They're supposed to be good in desserts or for canning. I'm tempted to plant an entire bed full of the suckers.

 

Tomatillos

Ground Cherries

Tomorrow begins my seed starting adventure (lightless for now). Wish me luck!

Seed Starting - Tomatillos and Ground Cherries

Back on March 7th I was super excited, because I ordered a bunch of seeds from the Territorial Seed Company for starting indoors (btw, Territorial Seed is my favorite seed catalog, even though they're in the Pacific Northwest and I'm in Massachusetts. Hands down the most user friendly catalog I've encountered, and their seed varieties seem to do well here. Similar enough climate I guess?). That same day I also ordered this very awesome grow-light set up from Park Seed:

Park Seed's website listed it as "ready to ship", but apparently that was a lie, because here we are on March 25th, and it's still back ordered. Grrrr. So I today I canceled the order. I need to start my seeds, STAT.  So I ran to my local hardware store and got some seed starting mix and a tray. I already own a seedling heat mat, and have lots of little peat pots for filling with the seed starter. I'm not sure *what* I'm going to do about a grow light.  I started seeds indoors for the first time two years ago without a  light. I just kept the tray in the sunshine in the window. Most of the tomatoes and peppers didn't fare too well, but I did end up with some thriving grape tomatoes.

I could make my *own* grow light. There are lots of easy instructions out there online. This the best tutorial I've come across. I've mostly been befuddled by how to *hang* the darn thing. I'd like to keep the seedlings on top of a bookshelf in my home office. I'm thinking I might be able to copy the grow light stand in the above pic using materials from Home Depot? I may just give it a try. You lucky readers will get to hear all about it!

I usually just buy seedlings from local nurseries, but this year I want to grow tomatillos and ground cherries - which are hard ( and in the case of ground cherries impossible?) to find around here. I happened across a tomatillo seedling two years ago at the nursery down the street. I bought it on a whim, and it took off like gangbusters! By the end of the summer that one plant had produced at least 100 tomatillos. We put them in casseroles and made salsa verde. I think what I loved most was the way the leaves smelled like a spicy queso sauce. Yum.

I checked high and low for another tomatillo plant last year, and came up empty, dang it. I can't take that chance this year. I *must* have my tomatillos. So seeds it is. Territorial Seed has ground cherries on the same page as their tomatillo seeds. They looked crazy intriguing, so I'm now obsessed with trying to grow them too. They look a lot like tomatillos, but they're smaller and rosier, and instead of zesty they're sweet like real cherries. They're supposed to be good in desserts or for canning. I'm tempted to plant an entire bed full of the suckers.

 

Tomatillos

Ground Cherries

Tomorrow begins my seed starting adventure (lightless for now). Wish me luck!

Seed Starting: Tomatillos and Ground Cherries

Back on March 7th I was super excited, because I ordered a bunch of seeds from the Territorial Seed Company for starting indoors (btw, Territorial Seed is my favorite seed catalog, even though they're in the Pacific Northwest and I'm in Massachusetts. Hands down the most user friendly catalog I've encountered, and their seed varieties seem to do well here. Similar enough climate I guess?). That same day I also ordered this very awesome grow-light set up from Park Seed:

Park Seed's website listed it as "ready to ship", but apparently that was a lie, because here we are on March 25th, and it's still back ordered. Grrrr. So I today I canceled the order. I need to start my seeds, STAT.  So I ran to my local hardware store and got some seed starting mix and a tray. I already own a seedling heat mat, and have lots of little peat pots for filling with the seed starter. I'm not sure *what* I'm going to do about a grow light.  I started seeds indoors for the first time two years ago without a  light. I just kept the tray in the sunshine in the window. Most of the tomatoes and peppers didn't fare too well, but I did end up with some thriving grape tomatoes.

I could make my *own* grow light. There are lots of easy instructions out there online. This the best tutorial I've come across. I've mostly been befuddled by how to *hang* the darn thing. I'd like to keep the seedlings on top of a bookshelf in my home office. I'm thinking I might be able to copy the grow light stand in the above pic using materials from Home Depot? I may just give it a try. You lucky readers will get to hear all about it!

I usually just buy seedlings from local nurseries, but this year I want to grow tomatillos and ground cherries - which are hard ( and in the case of ground cherries impossible?) to find around here. I happened across a tomatillo seedling two years ago at the nursery down the street. I bought it on a whim, and it took off like gangbusters! By the end of the summer that one plant had produced at least 100 tomatillos. We put them in casseroles and made salsa verde. I think what I loved most was the way the leaves smelled like a spicy queso sauce. Yum.

I checked high and low for another tomatillo plant last year, and came up empty, dang it. I can't take that chance this year. I *must* have my tomatillos. So seeds it is. Territorial Seed has ground cherries on the same page as their tomatillo seeds. They looked crazy intriguing, so I'm now obsessed with trying to grow them too. They look a lot like tomatillos, but they're smaller and rosier, and instead of zesty they're sweet like real cherries. They're supposed to be good in desserts or for canning. I'm tempted to plant an entire bed full of the suckers.

 

Tomatillos

Ground Cherries

Tomorrow begins my seed starting adventure (lightless for now). Wish me luck!