Jiffy Starting Trays Review

March 12, 2021 Sarah

While I normally don’t buy the tray setups sold in late winter/early spring at garden centers, this year we picked up a number of Jiffy products to try out. The tray system comes with a tray (the base), a clear plastic lid that acts as a mini greenhouse, and peat pellets that expand to form natural “pots” for your seeds. The larger setups also include an inner tray, to hold the pellets. Some of the kits also included tag markers and 3 of them even came with liquid plant feed.

We checked out a number of garden centers, and for in person buying Wal-Mart was the best stocked, with all the choices, including some of the refills.

They have worked well to teach the boys more about seeds (science) and the outdoors, as part of their homeschooling. I was wandering through a store the other week when it occurred to me this would be a great project for the boys and that was what started the whole review.

For a small scale garden (a couple small raised beds) I can see how these trays work well. No mess, no fussing around. You don’t have to buy anything extra for them. After years of large scale planting of seeds, it’s easy to overlook this. Not everyone wants to or needs 1000’s of 4″ pots, and 1022 trays, and large quantities of custom blended potting mix. Most people don’t have the space for this, nor the need. So I remembered…maybe there is a place for systems like Jiffy, for when 6 tomato plants is plenty, rather then needing 100 of a plant variety.

First off: No need to mix up potting soil and fill cups and get them ready. There was no mess involved. All I needed was water to soak the pellets. It was easy. Even the boys could do it. And that is something interesting. I followed the directions to use warm water the first 2 trays, then I deviated outside and used ice cold water in 5 gallon buckets, with a small watering can. It worked just fine with cold water, yes it took longer, but to make up for it, I put the clear lids on, and it heated up on its own, absorbing the water right up. The key is to cover the pellets with water and check back, adding more until all the pellets are fully hydrated. Expect the largest pellet size to take 10 to 15 minutes, with the smaller ones rehydrating a lot faster.

How do you know which to buy? It depends on your seeds of choice. For flowers and herbs, the smaller pellet size of say 36MM works great. For bigger seeds, such as green beans, peas, and so on, use the larger size pellets. They will need more grow space for their roots. Tomatoes do best in the largest, unless you plan on upsizing into a larger pot (I do this for my plants I sell).

The sizes we picked up:

The small 36MM 12 peat pellets greenhouse kit fits on deep windowsills, and is a great size for children to use, for homeschool projects. We have a couple of them lining the dining room window, getting the warm afternoon sun.

The 16 Peat Pellet Greenhouse Kit, in 50 MM size. These work well for tomatoes, as noted. They are large pellets.

The 25 Peat Pellet Starter Greenhouse, in 42MM size. I planted tomatoes in these as well. Because why not?

The 36 Peat Pellet Greenhouse Kit, in 50 MM size. With their large size this kit would be great for beans and corn, both of which don’t like transplanting.

The 72 Peat Pellet Greenhouse, in 36MM size. I had forgotten to plant Oregon Spring tomatoes, one I usually grow a lot of, for both sale and planting here. 72 plants is crazy numbers I know. For most people. But if I want a couple hundred jars of salsa canned this coming summer, you grow a lot of plants.

All the little greenhouses. The lids sit on top, and they do keep the moisture in. I was checking the seeds we started for the boys and we had germination within 4 days for the first flowers.

Most of the kits had this on the back, where it has a cut out that you can note what seeds you planted in each pellet.

Rehydrated, seeded and ready to be tucked away to grow under cover (in one of the pop up greenhouses). And it self waters itself with condensation, meaning less checking for water needed.

Having invested into the trays, I will continue to reuse them, and I will pick up pellet refills to use. Gimmicky? Sure. But they do work, so I stand corrected on overlooking them before.

~Sarah

Working On The Homestead

March 2, 2021 Sarah

February was a relatively normal February as it goes. A mostly mild winter month, with a couple days of snow and a week of low temperatures to pause nature.

As I worked on setting up the portable pop up greenhouses in the orchard bed, the two dawrf hens (V and Gray Grey) popped in to enjoy the dry and warm climate. Hard to blame them.

If properly staked out and weighted down, these greenhouses work well. You might note we weight ours down with paving stones. Between two of them I set up the potting area.

Density is the game for us – put as much in to an area. You water less and I find get better growth. This also means for us that the orchard (it’s only 6 trees) holds a chicken coop, a small shed and various potting areas/greenhouses. It sits behind good fencing, so the deer stay out (so far). The orchard has been happier it seems as well. The trees were not doing great before I changed this last year. I didn’t weed or water enough – and when we added the chickens, the fencing doubled. Before the trees were getting periodic damage from the deer. Now I remember to water the trees, and the chickens suppress the weeds.

Math work masked as garden time. I had the boys go out and measure every bed to see how much square footage we are using.

Escorting a hen out of the berry bed. She is a good digger and I didn’t want her ripping up plants on accident.

The main greenhouse. The ducks sleep in here at night.

With a winter storm coming, I made sure all the trays got moved into the big greenhouse, and that the ducks had lots of warm new hay on the ground.

The hens were not amused by snow 1.

And the snow came. Sledding was to be had. And the birds decided to stay inside for a few days.

And this is when you know spring is arriving. 11 hours of daylight. It’s the tipping point. Yes, cold weather can still happen, but it won’t be deep and long. The chickens start getting more active and start popping eggs.

The little chicken is growing up. He’s double the size of the other hens. And he’s finally becoming into being a rooster.

The rhubarb is wakening up.

After the now melted, it was time to get trays of pots ready.

Just this past week it was nearly 60* midday! In the pop up greenhouses it was 80 to 90*. Toasty in there if the winds kicked up.

In the picture before you can see the Elderberry tree. It is just opening up its leaves.

When the sun comes out, and the grass is covered in robins, migrating back, it almost feels like spring. I brought the saw horses out, and got them planked. As the plants grow, space to hold them becomes important.

Speaking of roosters, Raven has picked a lady friend. He chooses to be with one of our original hens. She will be a year old soon.

And the first Dandelion opened up.

But of course, spring weather means spring weeding.

Some plants made it over from the fall and winter, so I have let them be.

The garlic is growing on the right. We have some onions planted on the left (not up yet). Soon the beds will be full of lettuce, spinach and kale.

Spring brings egg production back up. That makes me oh so happy!

Here is to spring coming and plants surging.

~Sarah

Gardening · Homesteading

March: Garden Tasks and Planning

February 19, 2021 Sarah

March….comes in wet in the PNW, and leaves with Spring happening. Probably still wet though. This year so far the rain has been good for us in the Olympic Rainshadow.

The zone we use for our homestead is 8b. March will have longer hours of light (we cross 11 hours of daylight in March), and the temperatures get slowly get warmer, but will still freeze at night on clear days. There is of course a minor chance of snow in March, and it does happen, but not as heavy or cold as in February most years.

But more this year, it is time to think hard and long about self sufficiency. If you are growing seedlings for example, step and grow extras. You’d be surprised at how often others will jump to trade for them, or pay you cash for them. As you are planning out your seedings, think what ones you can save seed from come late in summer. Think about what would be great to have extra rows of – for canning and dehydrating.

Garden Tasks:

Prune rose bushes.
Get bare root plants in the ground, such as fruit trees, nut trees, blueberries, berry canes and roses.
Plant flower bulbs.
Plant onion sets that are bulbs.
Weed beds.
Clean out birdhouses, bird baths and bird feeders. Scrub them good.
Feed existing fruit trees, blueberries and berry canes.
Turn compost piles. Or start one!

Seeds To Plant:

To see more on when to seed, and transplant, see here.

Below are seeds you can start in March and or are ready to transplant, which are either colder-weather crops, or need a longer start time. The dates are not set in stone, it is a guide of what week may be most preferable to get them started. With a cold/wet spring, waiting a week or two more before seeding is smart.

Needless to say, the start of March is a good time to have seeds on hand, potting soil and small pots – and a sunny window, greenhouse or grow light system on hand. And if you start them later? It’s OK for many crops. And for temperamental ones like broccoli, you always can grow those as a fall crop, where they often fare better than in spring, if you miss the window, or late winter is too warm/cold.

What we are doing is using the last frost date as our guide, and backing up to figure out when to seed, be it inside, outdoors direct, or when to transplant your seedling you started inside.

So for Zone 8b, if the last frost date is April 15th, the dates going back:

3 weeks: March 25th
4 weeks: March 18th
5 weeks: March 11th
6 weeks: March 4th
7 weeks: February 25th

Seed Chart

Artichokes

Start inside first week of March.

Beets

48-60 days, seed direct from March and on, every 2 weeks for continuous crops.

Broccoli

70 days, start in greenhouse 6-8 weeks before last frost. Transplant after last frost.

Cabbage

80 to 150 days, start in greenhouse 6 weeks before last frost, transplant 3 weeks before last frost date.

Cauliflower

75-85 days. Start in greenhouse 6-8 weeks before last frost. Transplant after last frost.

Carrots

65-70 days, seed direct in ground, starting a few weeks before last frost. Repeat every 2 weeks for continuous crops.

Celery

120 days, start in greenhouse 8 weeks before last frost. Transplant after last frost.

Eggplant

Start indoors first week of March.

Greens

Bok Choy: 44 days, start in greenhouse 4 weeks before last frost.
Kale: 50-70 days, start in greenhouse 4 weeks before last frost.
Spinach: 44 days, start in greenhouse 4 weeks before last frost.
Swiss Chard: 55 days, start in greenhouse 4 weeks before last frost.
Swiss Chard and Kale can be reseeded, directly, or in greenhouse, through the growing season.

Herbs

Start in greenhouse in March, transplant or set outside after last frost.

Kohlrabi

60 days, start in greenhouse 4 weeks before last frost.

Lettuce

Romaine: 60-80 days, start in greenhouse 4 to 6 weeks before last frost, transplant after last frost. Repeat every 2 weeks of seeding.
Other leaf lettuce: 30-45 days, start in greenhouse 2 weeks before last frost, transplant after last frost. Repeat every 2 weeks of seeding.

Onions

Eating: 110 days, start in greenhouse 8 weeks before last frost. Transplant after last frost. (We grow Walla Walla)
Bunching: 75 days, start in greenhouse 4-8 weeks before last frost. Transplant after last frost. Seed every 2 weeks for continuous crops.

Peas

Dwarf: Seed directly 4 to 6 weeks before last frost.
Bush: 55-70 days, seed directly 4 to 6 weeks before last frost.
Pole: 65-70 days, seed directly 4 to 6 weeks before last frost.

Peppers

Hot: 70 days, Start in greenhouse 8 to 12 weeks before last frost. Transplant after
Sweet: 75 days, same as above.
Ancho: 80 days, same as above.

Potatoes

Start planting on 3rd week of March. Start prep of seed potatoes a week before.

Pumpkin

Jack Be Little: 95 days, start seeds 2 to 6 weeks before last frost, transplant after last frost.
Regular Pumpkins: 90-120 days, start 2 to 6 weeks before last frost. Transplant after last frost.

Rhubarb

Start 8 to 12 weeks before last frost, in greenhouse. Transplant after last frost. Let establish before you harvest plants. A full year is the best.

Spinach

Start direct seeding start of second week of March.

Squash

Summer Squash: 40-70 days, seed direct after last frost. If starting in greenhouse, 2 to 6 weeks before last frost.
Butternut: 95 days, start in greenhouse 2 to 6 weeks before last frost, transplant after last frost date.
Winter Squash: 105-110 days, start in greenhouse 2 to 6 weeks before last frost, transplant after last frost date.

Strawberry

Alpine: Alpine plants produce ever bearing, for a fall crop from first year plants, start seeds in greenhouse 8-12 weeks before last frost. Slow germination is normal. Once last frost is passed, transplant to gallon pots, set outside to finish growing.

Tomatoes

Dwarf: 60 days, start in greenhouse 4 weeks before last frost, or for bigger plants, up to 8 weeks. Transplant in first week of May.
Shorter Season: 48-68 days, same as above.
Heirloom: 60-80 days, same as above.

Turnips

Direct seed March 15th.

~Sarah

Gardening · Homesteading

Dealing With Cold Snaps

February 9, 2021 Sarah

Living in the temperate zone of 8b in the Pacific Northwest, we face rain and wind a lot more than we do cold snaps. But every year we usually see a vicious week or so of cold, often coming down from Canada, out of the Fraser River Valley. This week one is starting up, so we spent the past few weeks making sure everything was set up for it. It has brought clear skies mostly, which made the work easier to do.

So what should you do to ensure the cold not negatively affecting your homestead and/or garden?

Animals:

Change all animal bedding, and lay in a new bedding and do it thickly. Your animals will thank you.
Make sure that your chickens and ducks have a place to bed down, out of the wind.
Up their feed a bit. Give them extra calories.
Clean out all their water containers well and stock it up with clean water. Use rubber containers so you can kick them to break up ice, as needed.

Around the homestead/gardens:

Disconnect all hoses from water hydrants and from buildings. If on buildings, be sure to put insulated covers on the faucets. If your water hydrants are frost safe, don’t worry. Try to drain all your hoses well. We use black real rubber ones, they warm up in the day thankfully.
Bring in any plants that you might have overlooked if the winter has been warm (which this year it has been pretty temperate, in the 40 to 50’s during the day, and rarely even a light frost). You don’t need to haul them in the house, a garage or shop is fine, as is pop up greenhouses, you just want them more protected. For example, I had succulents in pots I had forgotten about, and they are in the greenhouse now.
Use cold snaps as a reminder to clean up your greenhouse, if you have one. We spent our time on Sunday cleaning it out for the year. The ducks live at night in ours, so it needed a sprucing up.
If you have started seeds, now is the time to make sure they are protected. Make sure all your trays are under cover in a greenhouse, or pop up greenhouse. If your seeds have started sprouting, I highly recommend covering them with frost fabric. This is the only time I baby anything – is laying down the fabric over the trays. It adds 5 to 10 degrees protection.
If you have citrus or similar more delicate plants in your greenhouse, cover them as well with frost fabric, if your greenhouse is not heated. It really does make a difference.
Check around the garden looking for buckets, pots or watering cans with water in them, knock out the water so it doesn’t freeze inside and potentially expand, causing cracks later.

~Sarah

Gardening · Homesteading · Reviews

Hamama Microgreens Growing Set Review

January 29, 2021 Sarah

Let’s leave it at this: I am a sucker for Instagram and Facebook ads. I’ll see something and think about, take a look. Maybe I don’t buy it then, but I may come back later on round 2 or 3 of ads. When I first saw an ad for the Hamama Microgreens growing sets, I was intrigued. Sure, it was kind of hipster elite but it got me thinking. I have grown microgreens a couple ways, and those were messy (especially grown in soil), and not great for doing inside, on a window.

But a few weeks ago I saw another ad pop up, with a really good deal, so good I couldn’t pass it up. It was $17 with a $17 credit to use on more of the seed quilts! And the shipping was even included.

Less than a week later I had a starter kit – the growing tray, and 2 microgreen seed sheets – in my mailbox.

So what are they? They sell 10 varieties of seed quilts, predone and ready to start growing.

I started with Super Salad Mix, which is ready in about 10 days. It’s satisfying to watch something grow in the dead of Winter, in the window next to my desk. And it has been a great way to do gardening with the boys inside on cold days.

It’s quite simple to set up. Open up a seed quilt, discard packaging (which is compostable btw). Add water to the fill line in the tray, then put the seed quilt in it, and push down gently, ensuring the entire quilt is covered with water.

Then set the tray to do its thing. While you can set it in a window, as I have done, you can also set it on a counter, as long as it receives either natural or artificial lighting, that is all that matters. I marked on the included paper what day it was started, so I would not forget.

4.5 days into the process:

The seeds are starting to sprout, under the blanket. Eventually the seeds push up and either rip through or push up the top. Take it off gently at that point, and let finish growing.

Slowly getting there, growing to the light.

After they are ready to start harvesting, in about 10 days, snip away. To keep for longer use, cut off, and store in a zip top bag in the refrigerator. Do not wash before storing (since they are not grown in soil, no need to wash unless you really want to).

Now then, I have tested the difference between growing in a window and on the counter. It doesn’t need direct light, just light. What I noticed is that growing in the window stagnated the seeds germinating, which I atribute to the cold seeping in from the window at night (since it is often in the 30’s at night here). So something to ponder. Think warmth over windows.

They offer 10% to first time customers, use “SUPERGREENS”. It’s a fun way to grow inside, but also great for homeschooling with children. Mine have really enjoyed watching the seeds grow and “taking care” of it. Which means…they will enjoy eating it once the harvest happens.

~Sarah