When To Start Your Seeds

[bossgard]

Phil and Other Forum Members:

Here is the link to ?When to Start Your Seeds, Learn How to Create a Seed Starting Calendar?.

I plan on using this guide in creating my own seed planting schedule for the first time this year. When you get to the ?Sort Your Seed Packets? section, I tweaked this a little bit. Since it didn?t cost me anything and I had the materials on hand, I think it will help me gain control of the packets. I have 84 packets of vegetable seeds I keep track of.

I printed some labels via a Word Processing Program on sheets, similar to Avery #5267 ½? x 1-3/4?, 80 on a sheet. On the label I printed the following copy:  ?D   F   R   S?. Which stands for: D ? Direct Sow, F ? Plant After Last Frost Date, R ? Repeat or Successive Plantings, S ? Special Advice. I placed a printed label on the back side of my seed packets where the various planting instructions are printed, being careful not to cover any information.

With a yellow highlighter in my hands, I re-read the instructions and marked each letter that was appropriate.  You will find that sometimes more than one letter will be highlighted. An indoor (house, greenhouse, etc.) planting schedule is the first priority for me, so my first sort is ?F?. Some varieties I will start both indoors and do a Direct Sow, depending upon if the indoor plants are ready to be hardened off. The ?R? and ?S? are self explanatory.

I would like to see George adapt this or a similar concept into Genie. Maybe if several of us use this guide this year, and report from time to time, we can come up with something.

Let us know how things go!

Here?s the link:
http://www.gardeners.com/When-to-Start-Your-Seeds/5215,default,pg.html

- Toby

[ideasguy]

Great stuff there Toby. A great link and precious information

We will definitely be referring to that during our Vegetables project!
http://www.garden-software.co.uk/vegetables/
and its much better to have it here than in the running topic on the project here:
http://www.flowergenie.co.uk/ideas/forum/index.php?topic=1313.msg8947;topicseen#msg8947

Many of the things mentioned are what we call "Events"  Ideas Genie Pro (many I would not have thoigh of as I'm very much a veg novice)
e.g.

I didn't make daily entries like Thomas Jefferson and other famous journal keepers, but on a weekly basis I would record the major tasks I'd accomplished, a general weather summary (hot, dry, wet, cold), what plants were in bloom, and what crops were coming in.

Events mentioned there (before= task and after done= an event):

Under Files tab in IG Pro we could set up Plant Care Classifications (GA011) for:

Task	Event
Start Seeds	Seeds Started
Plant out	Planted out
Bloom	In bloom
Harvest	Harvested

Coming in (what exactly does the writer refer to there? Crops being harvested?)

Weather:
Yes, Laurie has been asking for this for some time.
A must in next version.

[bossgard]

George:

RE: 'Coming in'

I'm only guessing, but could that be something pertaining to harvest. 'Sweet corn should be ready to harvest next week, or two weeks'. Like in pre-planning for preserving (canning, freezing, to bring in necessary supplies.) Or to tell the neighbors when you are going to give them some.

Might also pertain to flowering, as to peak of harvest, like; 'all the rhodies willl be in full bloom next week, remember to take photos!'

'Reminder notes?' A 'fore-warning?'. I've used the phrase; 'sweet corn, coming on' to mean this type of thing.
I would actually notify my friends when to expect strawberrries, etc. so they could make plans to preserve.

- Toby

[ideasguy]

Its a pretty ambiguous statement.
I'm sure we can be more specific in our project 

In relation to this table:

Task	Event
(Todo= Future Tense)	(Past Tense)
Start Seeds	Seeds Started
Plant out	Planted out
Bloom	In bloom
Harvest	Harvested

I'd like you veg experts to advise at this stage.
Suggest some more please (if necessary) which we can add using GA011 for the Veg. Project

[roiphil]

Harden Off - Hardened Off, what you do before transplanting outside

still thinking 

[bossgard]

George:

I don?t know if this is the type of info you are wanting at this particular moment and posted on this Topic, but this is what I would like to be able to do. (Now, would be nice)

I want to go to a module something like GA006 (QUERY) or GA034S01 (REPORTS) and pull a printed report on the vegetable seed pack sort I had mentioned earlier in this Topic.

Why should I sort the seed packets into two baskets (or more) physically, when the computer and GENIE will do it for me? I want to place the appropriate code letter(s) I had mentioned, ?D   F   S   R? into my plant data information (where, is for you determine).

As for instance, with GA034S01, I would like to print out a hard copy, in so doing I would click on the radio buttons for P/N, Botanical Name, and one or more of  ?D   F   R   S? as my needs might be for this particular list.

After having this printed list, I could start my TASKS/EVENTS procedures. I wouldn?t be able to do TASKS/EVENTS without that list to guide me.

In fact printed reports on progress of the various stages of the SEED PLANTING CALENDAR would be nice!

I will get the ?ole noggin? thinking about other TASKS/EVENTS that I might need. .

- Toby

[bossgard]

Great, Phil, for you to remember the 'Hardening Off' factor.

I'm sure you are aware that 'Hardening Off' is a calendar event in itself.
At least the ones I'm aware of suggest:
Week 1 - (You do this!)
Week 2 - (You do this!)
Week 3 - (You do this!)
And continue on until it is completed.
I might be able to come up with one here, if you or George don't have one!
Is the recommended procedure the same length of time, or does it vary according to location on the planet?
- Toby

[ideasguy]

So now you wanna list, huh!

Try this.
In your database, create a new gardener called Seed Types
Create 4 garden areas
D,   F,   S and R
Use any program and add your plants to the appropriate Garden Area
and yes, you can add the same plant to D and to F

Then go ye to Reports -> GA016
Go forth and select ye the olde Gardener called Seed Types
Click ye the Print button and behold, ye shall have a nice list of plants neatly gathered in the groups which thou hath defined.

George has spoken
(and all that just passed the Spell Checker  )

RE:

In fact printed reports on progress of the various stages of the SEED PLANTING CALENDAR would be nice!

Patience lad... We've only got to Session 2. Wait and see what is in store

[bossgard]

George:

AMAZING! I now have Carrot 'Danvers Half Long #322-10' in Garden Area D on a printed list.
Oh! What fun we have!
Thanks to you, SIR! And when you speak, you certainly do SPEAK! With authority, I might add!

- Toby

[ideasguy]

Y'know, I think he's happy

[bossgard]

George:

Happy? Me? Maybe for a little while.

I would hate to think that you would leave GA048 out of the Tasks/Events.
I assume it would be LABEL  =  LABELED.

Some words that come to mind when I think about Vegetable Seed Starting:
Sterilization (Equipment, Medium), Misting,Temperature, Lighting, Nutrients.
I'm not too sure how they might fit into theTasks/Events, but they all are important.
I'll let you and the other Members figure that out.

I would also like to post a scan of a page from a book, that might help you think like a
'Veggie Pro' Seed Starter, would somebody tell me (step-by-step) how to do that.
I can locate the image. I don't understand the 'Additional Options' feature.
Or maybe the size is too big. ??

- Toby

[roiphil]

George:

Happy? Me? Maybe for a little while.

I would hate to think that you would leave GA048 out of the Tasks/Events.
I assume it would be LABEL  =  LABELED.

Some words that come to mind when I think about Vegetable Seed Starting:
Sterilization (Equipment, Medium), Misting,Temperature, Lighting, Nutrients.
I'm not too sure how they might fit into theTasks/Events, but they all are important.
I'll let you and the other Members figure that out.

I would also like to post a scan of a page from a book, that might help you think like a
'Veggie Pro' Seed Starter, would somebody tell me (step-by-step) how to do that.
I can locate the image. I don't understand the 'Additional Options' feature.
Or maybe the size is too big. ??

- Toby

firstly the pic needs to be hosted somewhere i use photobucket, upload your pic to photobucket, then simply copy and the IMG SRC code from photbucket into your message, if you cant do it email me the pic as an attachment i and will do it for you, look on my profile for my email address

Phil

[bossgard]

Phil:

I think that is a long round-about procedure for attaching to a Forum Post. George had explained it to me once, and I have done it before, but I've lost track of the instructions. Your procedure would open an all new area for me to become involved with.  But, many thanks.

Maybe others might help?

If it makes any difference, my scanner will scan to PDF, BITMAP, JPEG and MULTI-TIFF. Does it make a difference?

- Toby

[roiphil]

i dont know if it makes any difference on image type JPF TIFF etc
doing it through a picture hosted somewhere is the only way i know if there is a quicker method i would love to know

[ideasguy]

Make them jpeg.

Make a folder called temp (or whatever) on your computer
Use Tools-> Resize program GA051 in Ideas Genie Pro
Point Location for Originals to where your photos are
Point Location for Reduced copies to temp
Set the values of Max Height and Max width to 600
Select photos to be resized and click do selected

Then when you got to post a message, click Additional options, click the Browse button and locate the images in temp
That will fill the field in Attach
Do one image at a time per posting