Planting seeds directly in the garden or container

Many vegetables grow best when their seeds are planted directly in the garden or container. Beans, peas, cucumbers, squash, okra, corn, and melons germinate rapidly in warm soil and thrive when their roots are never disrupted by transplanting. Other crops, such as lettuce and greens, can be transplanted, but it’s just as easy to direct sow. Still others, such as carrots and beets, prefer staying in one spot where their roots can sink in quickly and deeply.

Most direct sow seeds are planted in rows. Here’s how to do it in your garden or container:

1. Prior to planting, loosen the top few inches of soil with a rake (for garden beds) or three- pronged fork (for containers) and work in organic matter such as compost, if you haven’t already.
2. Using the corner of a hoe (for larger seeds), the prongs of a rake (for smaller seeds), or your
3. fingers (for containers), prepare an indented row twice the depth of the seed.
4. Drop seeds into the row at the recommended spacing.
5. Gently backfill the row with soil to cover the seeds completely, tamping the soil down gently.
6. Irrigate with a fine mist of water until the soil is saturated.

Some seeds are fine when planted with less precision. Scatter tiny seeds such as carrots and lettuce on top of the soil and run your fingers or rake across the soil to let the seeds settle in without getting buried too deeply. They can—and often prefer to—germinate with access to sunlight. Just keep the planting area moist until germination.
Other seeds benefit from a bit of coaxing to help them germinate faster. Soak hard-coated seeds such as beans and okra in water for several hours to soften the seed coat. Although this step is not necessary, it can hasten germination.
Seeds will germinate at
the highest rate when they’re  planted  at  the  ideal  time.  The  soil temperature is the biggest indicator of the ideal planting time. Many seed packets include the ideal soil temperature, but you can find this information online. Planting into soggy soil will cause many seeds of summer crops to rot. Assuming the soil temperature is ideal, wait until the soil is fairly moist and time your planting before a rain.

Resources

Find your average frost date

The Old Farmer’s Almanac, https://www.almanac.com/gardening/frostdates

Find your local cooperative extension service by zip code

Gardening Know How, https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/extension-search

Find soil-testing labs by state

Gardening Products Review, https://gardeningproductsreview.com/state-by-state-list-soil-testing-labscooperative-extension-offices

Garden tools

Gardener’s Supply Company, https://www.gardeners.com

Seed and plant suppliers

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, https://www.rareseeds.com

Seed Savers Exchange, https://www.seedsavers.org

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, https://southernexposure.com

Territorial Seed Company, https://territorialseed.com

References

Bradley, Fern Marshall, Barbara W. Ellis, and Deborah Martin. The Organic Gardener’s Handbook of Natural Pest and Disease Control. New York: Rodale, Inc., 2009.

Bradley, Fern Marshall, Barbara W. Ellis, and Ellen Phillips. Rodale’s Ultimate Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening. New York: Rodale, Inc., 2009.

Bradley, Fern Marshall, and Jane Courtier. Vegetable Gardening. White Plains, NY: Toucan Books, 2006.

Cool Springs Press. Gardening Complete. Minneapolis: Cool Springs Press, 2018.

Damrosch, Barbara. The Garden Primer . New York: Workman Publishing, Inc., 2008.

Harrington, J. F. “Soil Temperature Conditions for Vegetable Seed Germination.” University of California at Davis. Accessed October 18, 2019.

https://extension.oregonstate.edu/sites/default/files/documents/12281/soiltemps.pdf .

McCrate, Colin, and Brad Halm. High-Yield Vegetable Gardening . North Adams, MA: Storey Publishing, 2015.

Reich, Lee. Weedless Gardening . New York: Workman Publishing Co., Inc., 2001.

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange (blog). “The Major Plant Families in a Vegetable Garden.” Accessed October 22, 2019. http://www.southernexposure.com/the-major-plant-families-in-a-vegetable-garden-ezp-190.html .