Starting Seeds

Last week I officially kicked of the 2011 farm season by starting my eggplant and pepper seeds.  I do not have my own greenhouse so my friends, James and Susan McDonald, kindly let me use space in theirs to start some of my plants.  I can't thank them enough for the use of this space since I do not have a place to put up a greenhouse of my own.  They have a retail shop next to the BP Station just off I -70 at the Adamsville.  It will open later in April with lots of hanging baskets and bedding plants.  In the fall they have a really cool corn maze out at the farm plus a pumpkin patch, hay rides, petting zoo, and lots of other family friendly activities.  If you are looking for a fun place to take your kids in the fall I highly encourage going to "Old McDonald's Farm!"  Here is their website if you want more information.  http://www.mcdonaldsgreenhouse.com/

I will plant seventy-two pepper seeds in this flat--on for each hole.

A view of the plants that the McDonalds have already started in their greenhouse.  This is just a small sample of the plants they grow.  They have several other greenhouses.

My first flats of the season (each flat is seventy-two plants.)  This is four flats of eggplant and twenty flats of peppers.  This is just the start.  Tomatoes will be next.  Watch for updates.

For those of you who will be buying garden plants and flowers this season I encourage you to buy locally.  There are a lot of family owned places in Zanesville to get them--in addition to my friends the McDonalds, there are all my friends who will be selling at Farmer's Market on Saturdays starting April 30th at the Fairgrounds, plus my neighbors the Paul's, just to name a few.  My friend Christie Gormley is growing a large selection of perennials this year.  My friend Jayne Barnes has a lot of different herbs and Becky Swingle has a cool variety of heirloom tomatoes and peppers that you might not find other places.  If you are looking for a good selection of seeds try Dollar Saver at the corner of Linden and Adair or at Fred's on Putnam.  So, wherever you live, I encourage you to skip the big box stores and support your local growers!