Pricking out and potting on...
...and the other jobs I'm doing in my garden over the Easter weekend
Easter has come late this year and so things are already well under way in the garden. Today I went to see my mum and admire her purple wisteria and Clematis armandii which have come out at the same time.
Then back to my own garden, where the beautiful blue sky disappeared and the temperature dropped. As it was spitting with rain, I decided to spend an hour or so pricking out seedlings growing in my lean to.
Seedlings are ready to prick out when they have developed a pair of ‘true leaves’ - baby versions of adult leaves - as well as their initial seed leaves. Pricking out simply means using a dibber, pencil or even your finger to carefully tease the seedling out of the seed compost and container in which it germinated and move it on to a bigger pot to continue growing.
It’s vital only to handle your seedlings by the leaves and never by the stem which is delicate at this stage and can easily break.
This video shows me pricking out and potting on Tomato ‘Masotka’ seedlings.
Other seedlings I potted on today include French marigolds and Mini Cherry Cola snapdragons.
Other jobs for the weekend include:
Planting out my kale seedlings on my allotment to make way for more seeds in my mini-greenhouse. I have already set up a net supported by short canes in the hope of warding off the resident pigeon which loves to snack on fresh young greens.
Sowing more seeds including Lady Godiva squash, Rouge Vif d’Étampes pumpkin, cucumber and the Dudi gourd seeds I got from the Heritage Seed Library.
Sowing sunflower seeds with my 11-year-old.
Planting out the lupins that I have grown from bare root plants to fill gaps in the flower borders.
Weeding and mulching our west-facing border which is rather overgrown.
Tidying up the front garden.
Starting work on the new alpine bed/ rockery I’m planning.
Persuading* my husband to mow the lawn.
*Some might call it nagging, especially him!