What seeds should I start indoors if I want to plant a vegetable garden in Massachusetts?
Saturday, February 28th, 2009 at
5:36 pm
Lost in Massachusetts asked:
I live in Massachusetts, and would like to have a small vegetable garden this summer. What seeds should I start indoors? I was thinking of planting:
tomatoes
cucumbers
peppers
onions
I’m not sure what else right now. Thanks for the help!
I live in Massachusetts, and would like to have a small vegetable garden this summer. What seeds should I start indoors? I was thinking of planting:
tomatoes
cucumbers
peppers
onions
I’m not sure what else right now. Thanks for the help!
Tagged with: Garden Seeds • Planting Tomatoes • Vegetable Garden
Filed under: Vegetable Garden
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All listed plus beans,squash,berries……leaf veg. start later ,out side
Tomatoes and peppers can be started inside.
However, if you’re new to gardening, I highly recommend buying small plants from your local garden store or nursery when it’s time to plant. You’ll want to plant those around the “last frost date”, which is probably in early May for you. They are tender plants, and frost can kill them.
Cucumbers and other squashes, and beans, you’ll want to plant the seeds directly in the ground the same time you plant out the peppers. (they grow quickly, and don’t like transplanting particularly)
Onions – I would by onion “sets”. if you go with seeds – it’ll be a couple years before you harvest. Plant the sets in the ground as soon as you can get a shovel in. (like now). They like cool/cold weather, and don’t care about frosts. Ditto for garlic and shallots. You could also sow leafy greens directly in the ground about 4-6 weeks before last frost date.
Starting seeds indoors can be tricky, and I would gain experience in the garden proper before attempting that. But if you’re determined to try – you need your SUNNIEST window. Start 4-6 weeks before you plant to plant out. Keep the soil carefully moist. If they don’t get enough light, they get thin and leggy. About a week before you plant them outside – you need to “harden them off”, which is a process of acclimating them to the outside. Take them outside and give them a few hours of direct sun. Increase the time in the sun each day, bringing them inside at night. After about a week of this, they can be outside all the time, and are ready to plant.
I start all my plants (same as yours except the onions) indoors. Since onions grow underground, I plant them directly in the garden. I use larger pots than what you get in a seed starter kit. This way I don’t have to worry about them if the weather stays colder longer than expected.
Hi:
Your main goal when planting seeds indoors is to allow the roots systems to develop. You do not want to put any plants in the ground until after the last frost and your ground temperature has warmed up. Depending on where you live in Massachusetts, you are either in zone six or seven. They both can have vegetable gardens started in mid to end April or first of May.
As far as starting seeds, the one thing you want to be careful of is not to start too soon so they get too big inside. Cucumbers will need room to sprawl out, so I would start some tomatoes, peppers and onions in the next week or two. Cucumbers can be done at the end of March. Also think about doing some herbs as they make a wonderful accent to a vegetable garden. Many flower and also great culinary use.
I hope this has helped some. I will link you to the spice and herb section of my website. There is a page on growing herbs from seeds, which also applys to vegetables. I will also link you to the site map, as this page has everything that is on the website. Browse through as there are several articles, tips, techniques that may help you. There is a page also on when to put out certain vegetables and the right ground temeratures. Good luck to you with your vegetable garden this year. Have a great day!
Kimberly