PDC LESSON 3.17 SEEDS – SOME VARIATIONS

                          

PERMACULTURE COURSE AGRO-ECONOMY

PDC LESSON 3.17 SEEDS – SOME VARIATIONS

 

Some variations are

citrus, avocado and pawpaw seed should not be dried before planting. When citrus seed is stored in the fridge, they will be viable seed for about 4 years. They can also be stored in moist sand. Rain forest seed should be kept moist and cool, and these can be stored in a plastic bag with some coconut coir fibre until they are ready for planting. For most vegetable seed, storage temperature of 5° C is ideal and for long-term storage, a fridge is the ideal place. For short-term storage, under the house in a south facing room would be fine.

 

Insect damage

Two days of freezing the seed won’t hurt the seed but it is important to make sure that the seed are thoroughly dry. Place the seed into a container before freezing and don’t open the lid until the container is back to room temperature. Freezing will kill any living creatures such as weevils.

 

Seeds that are at the end of their potency are often weaker and produce plants and seeds that have genetic defects or show a lack of vigour when the plant is growing.

Hygiene is really important and used pots should be washed prior to being used. They can have a final rinse in 1% bleach or a good shot of vinegar. Pots need to be filled to the top and tapped onto the bench top to exclude any air pockets. Punnets should be banned as these are far too shallow for the home gardener. The potting media dries out far too quickly without a sophisticated watering system and there’s little room for the roots to grow. A four inch pot is ideal for good root formation. 

The mixture should be neither too wet nor too dry but nicely damp. Do not over water or under water your seedlings. Feed your seedlings with a weak tea of kelp/ fish emulsion or diluted worm juice once a fortnight. Make sure that the emerging seedlings have enough sunlight. More sun is needed in the winter than in the summer. The morning sun in summer is kinder than the western sun. Keep the sunlight filtered so that the young seedlings don’t wilt during the day.

Text from the roots, Elisabeth Ferkonia (Aus.) PDC studied with Bill Mollison,