RED SOLO CUP, I FILL YOU UP

With potting soil!

The seedlings were outgrowing the Jiffy peat pellets that I started them in, so today I potted them up into red solo cups with holes poked in the bottom for watering and drainage.

This is the first time I've used the Jiffy pellets for seed starting (last year I made newspaper pots and filled them with potting soil, which worked, but looking back now I wasted so much soil doing it like that! You really don't need much soil to start seeds, especially if you are going to re-plant them after their true leaves form). The Jiffy pellets worked great - I had excellent germination rates and everything seemed to pop up FAST! It probably also helped that I kept the tray above the baseboard heater for warmth, something I didn't do last year. Some people have also had issues with the pellets growing mould, but I think I prevented that by re-hydrating the pellets with chamomile tea (it has natural anti-fungal properties). So they pretty much worked perfectly for me - I was very pleased and will be using them again next year!

I also planted my melon and squash seeds last Thursday. I was just so excited about getting my plot. I realize now that this was way. too. early. to be starting melons and squash. Like by a month. They have already sprouted and are big. And getting bigger. With a lot of roots. I hope I can keep them happy enough in pots until they are able to go outside...

Cantaloupe and Lambkin melons

I was away when these popped out of the soil and they literally grew this tall overnight! I usually keep an eye on them so I can put them under the light as soon as they sprout, but these guys were too quick for me and started searching for the light on their own.