Can I Plant Yet?

It never fails that at the first sign of warm weather I’m in the garden ready to plant. Just like a child on a road trip asking repeatedly, “Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?”. With me, it’s, “Can I plant yet? Can I plant yet? Can I plant yet?”. But Mother Nature is a fickle woman and can’t always decide if she is hot or cold. This seems to especially be the case in recent years when temperatures fluctuate to an early unseasonably warm temperature only to have a heavy frost the next week.  So if you have that unusually warm day and decide to put a few seeds in the ground, you are very likely doomed. Here’s why. 

When planting seeds, we prep beds and have everything ready to plant – composted, fertilized, watered. The one thing we don’t control, in most instances, is the temperature of the soil. The soil must reach a certain degree of warmth to initiate germination. When you plant early, if the soil does contain enough heat to germinate, you stand the risk of new growth being killed when temperatures plummet back to cold temperatures with normal seasonal fluctuations. This is prevented when you plant in hoop or greenhouses where temperatures are warmer due to contained heat. There are plants that germinate well at lower temperatures, but you need to research to find which varieties are compatible in

your planting zone. If you just can’t wait (like me) then there is always the option of starting seeds early inside under grow lights, on heat mats, or just in regular indoor warmer conditions in front of a sunny window. Once you have baby seedlings sprouting tall, you can transplant them outside at a later date when soil is reliably warm. This is the process used by many professional growers to provide all those beautiful, ready-to-plant seedlings and plants you see in retail market places. If you do plant early outdoors, it’s possible the seeds will grow just fine. Depending on conditions, you may get a full germination, a partial germination, or nothing at all. You then wait to see how mother nature reacts with her blackberry winters and such. This is the life of a farmer. 

My recommendation is to research not only optimal planting times for your planting zone, but also optimal plant varieties based on your average seasonal temperatures to have a successful planting season. Or, follow my example and try them all…..and do a lot of praying!  Here we grow again!