How to Sow
Vegetable Seeds

• Fill a seed tray / half seed tray with seed compost – which is light and contains a small but balance level of nutrients in the soil. Overfill and strike excess soil off with a board so that the seed tray is filled to the top with un-compressed soil.
• Press the soil down evenly with a seedboard so there is a 1cm lip at the top.
• Submerge the seed tray into a waterbath beneath so that the soil slowly absorbs the moisture from the bottom without disturbing the soil on top.
• Sprinkle seed evenly on the soil level using the furrows in your palm and tapping the seed off with the other hand.
• Cover the seeds with a small layer of vermiculite or perlite.
• Water above with a fine hose and add fungicide to the first watering to guard against damping off.
• Label and date the seeds and place in a cool light place

• Fill a 6-9cm pot with seed compost – which is light and contains a small but balance level of nutrients in the soil. Overfill and strike excess soil off with a board so that the seed tray is filled to the top with un-compressed soil.
• Submerge the seed tray into a waterbath beneath so that the soil slowly absorbs the moisture from the bottom without disturbing the soil on top.
• Press the seed/s into the soil to a depth of about 2cm using a dibber or pencil.
• Water above with a fine hose and add fungicide to the first watering to guard against damping off.
• Cover the seeds with more of the seed-compost.
• Label and date the seeds and place in a cool light place

Sowing as soon as possible is recommended. However should you need to keep seeds in store for a while, here are some pointers.
Seed packets are sealed so that they are air-less. This ensures a good shelf-life for seeds and keeps them in a dormant stage. If you open the seed packets and keep some seeds stored within for future use, their chance of germinating is reduced. If you are storing seed for future use, increase germination chances by storing them in as air-tight a container as you can.

Short term storage- Place your seed in a jar or plastic container. Seal the jar or container with a screw-on lid. Position in the refrigerator set to between 5 – 10°C.

Long term storage- The best practice is to open the packet immediately before you need to use the seed and reseal the packet with its special seal immediately after use, then place in the refrigerator.

Seedlings are very prone to a disease called damping off. This is a fungal disease that occurs when your seeds have been sown too densely, and light and ambient temperature fluctuates too much.
To control the light levels and ambient temperature, invest in a seed propagator which regulates humidity levels and distributes light evenly to the seedlings beneath. The micro-climate has a controlled temperature too that prevents damping off.

When your seeds germinate you should notice that the first pair of leaves look different to the leaves that come after. This is because the first pair of leaves are the seed leaves, that provided the seed with food but have the ability to photosynthesise too. So when a guide refers to the first ‘true leaves’ it means the leaves that appear after the seed leaves have unfurled. Bear this in mind for when you are advised to move on seedlings.