Germination is one of the key stages in plant growth. Each seed is a tiny present. Hidden inside is all the complex genetic information that tells it what to grow into, plus a little reserve of nutritional resources to help see that it gets off to a good start in life. This may be a small reserve, as in radish and rocket that produce lots of tiny seeds to spread their bets, or a larger one, like beans and peas that invest more in ensuring that the seed has a reserve of nutrients to help initial growth.
Seeds need water to germinate. We plant our seeds and then we water them in. The seeds take in the water and this causes the embryo to swell and expand and break through the protective seed coat. They also need oxygen, the right temperature (no use growing if it’s too cold) and the right light levels. Some plants, like poppies, need light to germinate whereas others prefer darkness. These different light requirements are why we plant seeds at different depths. Some, however, are simply not going to germinate no matter what loving care and attention they get. If seeds are cracked or broken, then they won’t grow. Germination success rates (the proportion of seeds that germinate) are very important for growers of all kinds from veg gardeners to foresters.So why haven’t my sweetcorn germinated? I planted them weeks ago! I’ve planted some other sweetcorn since and they are already poking through the soil. I think perhaps I drowned them. With all the hot dry weather I was afraid that they wouldn’t get enough moisture and over-compensated. It’s best to plant, water in, and then water again when the seedling emerges. Otherwise they might go mouldy, or not get enough oxygen. I’m going to excavate one tonight and see if the seed is still there and if it started to grow at all.
So what shall I do?
There will be no sweetcorn in my mixed veg plot… For this research, it doesn’t matter if something is missing from the plot – hopefully all the other plants will simply take advantage of the space and there will still be a good yield.
On the other hand, maybe my mum has some spare ones that she might swap for some kale… : )
Here's a quick summary of my veg plots so far...
ReplyDelete3rd April: I planted 27 red onion sets in short rows around the edge of the large plot.
4th April: 11 peas sown in groups of 3 or 2 in each bed.
9th April: sowed kale, beans and sweetcorn indoors.
13th April: some red onions showing.
Kale germinated on 14th, sweetcorn started to appear on 17th, and beans on 19th. Eventually I had 6/12 sweetcorn, 30 kale seedlings and 20/20 beans. Haven't grown corn for years, so didn't know what to expect... a friend says she usually gets about 50% germination.
18th April: I pricked out 18 kale seedlings into individual pots and gave the rest to my daughter. All 18 grew well and after hardening off outside I planted 6 in the large plot on May 10th. On the same day I planted out 12 beans and the 6 sweetcorn. I've kept back a few kale in case of slug damage, but so far so good and today, 20th May they're looking very healthy.
On Friday 13th(!) I sowed the rest of the peas(10 in each plot) spinach (26 in each plot) beetroot(95) and onions (220!)in the large plot.
I sieved soil and compost, and spread a 2cm layer over all the seeds and watered everything in.
The next day all the other seeds went in. I found it easier to divide them into four then spread each group over a quarter of the plot - then covered the whole area with another layer of sieved soil and compost.
After 4 days - and some overnight rain, radish and rocket were popping up all over.
20th May: The smallest sweetcorn is not thriving - the rest look ok. All the other transplanted veg are growing, and the large plot is covered with rocket. Inspecting daily to see what will be up next!
Apart from the sweetcorn, the worst germination so far has been the peas. Hoping the May sowing will be better.The ones that did come up in April are looking very well and climbing up their sticks.
Hi Val,
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear things are doing so well in your plot :)
Thanks so much for all this information, that is brilliant! The more feedback on how the trial is going, the better.
You counted 220 onion seeds? Wow! that was a lot more than expected. Let us know how you get on with those.
: )
Naomi
Aha! Two of the sweetcorn have finally popped up! Maybe a few more will show...
ReplyDelete5/6 sweetcorn planted out are surviving, though growing very slowly. I've been watering regularly through the dry weeks.
ReplyDeleteBeginning to wonder whether the beans are actually climbers - they're just sitting there, while beans in my other legume bed are half way up their sticks!
The beans are all climbing very well now, and today I saw the first purple flower!
ReplyDeletePeas are podding. I'm assuming I wait for peas to develop before picking as they're not mangetout are they?
Radish more or less finished in the small plot.
Still far too much rocket, despite regular cropping - the smaller plants of beetroot, spinach etc aren't doing too well in the shade of the rocket plants.