Alright folks, grab your coffee because today I’m walking you through exactly what I planted back in January right here in Zone 7. Yep, right smack in the middle of winter, I was gettin’ my hands dirty indoors.
Digging Out the Seed Stash
First thing I did was haul out my giant plastic tub full of seed packets – you know the one, it’s like a treasure chest only messier. Dumped everything on the dining room table (wife rolled her eyes but hey, it’s temporary!). Felt like a kid in a candy store, but gotta stay focused on what actually works for January starts here.
Sorting the Early Birds
Sifted through that pile lookin’ for the cold-hardy champs. Here’s the top 10 I settled on after checking dates on my packets and thinkin’ about what sprouted well for me before:
- Onions: Found my ‘Candy’ onion seeds – gotta get these guys going early to bulb up nice later.
- Leeks: Grabbed ‘American Flag’ leeks. Slowpokes, need that head start inside!
- Broccoli: Went with ‘Calabrese’. Remembered last year’s small heads started too late.
- Cabbage: Picked ‘Early Jersey Wakefield’ – tight little heads, always reliable for me.
- Cauliflower: Pulled ‘Snowball Y’. Optimistic on this one, we’ll see.
- Lettuce (Head): ‘Buttercrunch’ packets jumped out. Can’t beat fresh early salads.
- Kale: Had plenty of ‘Lacinato’ (Dinosaur) kale seeds. Tough as nails later on.
- Swiss Chard: ‘Bright Lights’ – pretty and practical for cut-and-come-again.
- Peppers (Habanero): Yeah, hot ones! Figured ‘Red Savina’ habs need tons of time to ripen, so in they go.
- Celery: Found a forgotten packet of ‘Utah Tall’. Not always easy, but worth a shot early.
Setting Up Shop in the Basement
Cleared off my slightly wobbly seed-starting shelf down in the basement. Dug out the seed trays and those little six-pack cells I saved from last year (washed them first, promise!). Mixed up a big bucket of damp seed-starting mix – just bought that cheap stuff, nothing fancy. Filled those cells up and patted ’em down lightly. Made a little divot in each cell with my finger for the seeds.
Playing Seed Roulette
Got my seeds ready. Tiny ones like lettuce, just sprinkled a couple per cell. Bigger stuff like peppers, popped one or two per cell. Dropped those onion seeds like they were going out of style. Covered most with a sprinkle of mix – except the lettuce, left ’em barely covered. Labeled each row with popsicle sticks and a sharpie… learned that lesson the hard way last spring!
Water, Heat, Wait (and Water Again)
Gave everything a gentle shower with the spray bottle – didn’t wanna wash those seeds away. Slid the trays onto the heat mats… gotta keep that soil warm! Covered ’em with clear plastic domids to trap moisture. Checked daily, spraying whenever things looked dry. Felt like forever, but then… tiny onions popped up! Then the kale! Felt like cheering. Took the domes off once most were up.
Keeping the Babies Alive
Moved the seedlings right under my old shop lights – lowered ’em real close, like 2 inches above. Run those lights 14-16 hours a day on a timer. Watering became the real chore – that mix dries out fast under the lights! Started poking a finger in daily. Spritzed the kale and lettuce every other day. Began a very weak fish emulsion mix once the broccoli had its first true leaves. Saw some leggy peppers? Lowered the lights even more.
Hardening Off Starts
Still got these guys downstairs under lights, growing slow but steady. Goal is to get them strong enough for the cold frame come late February or early March. Keeping my fingers crossed! That’s the state of my January sowing adventures. Lots of watering, lots of waiting, but seeing those sprouts feels worth it. Happy early planting!
