Starting from Seed: What You Need and How Do You Do It

Starting from Seed: What You Need and How Do You Do It

 

I like that this article provides multiple options. I've had success with the straight soil method and the paper towel. Haven't been able to get the shot glass/ cup of water to work yet because I think the seeds get too water logged (I could be doing it wrong). Thanks for sharing!

 

Has anyone tried soaking the seeds in hydrogen peroxide? I did some last year, and they sprouted. But that's not a very good Proof of Concept.
I took some very old, cheap seeds from the Dollar Store, and soaked them this year. I guess we'll see if it helps.

 

What you need? Some soil. Potting soil is good, but not necessary. Seeds prefer lighter soil, to heavier, clay-like soil. Something to put it in. Literally, ANYTHING, so long as it won't hold water (don't want the roots to drown). I have used old paper coffee cups, from McDonalds and Burger King, with a hole poked in the bottom (with a screwdriver, no less). You can even use old egg cartons, or TP cardboard rolls, with one end folded over to turn it into a pot. LIGHT. WATER.

And most importantly? PATIENCE

 

I'm glad that we're talking about this. I'm actually experimenting and trying to figure out what I can grow with resources on hand without spending too much additional $$.

I ordered this big bag of beans and wanted to find out if I can grow them. It could be useful to have a backup protein source in a SHTF kind of scenario. I wasn't sure if I would have any luck because chances are, these beans were sitting on a shelf for a long time before they got shipped to me.

Will these even grow if I plant them? by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 14:27

I stored the rest in mylar bags with oxygen absorbers for a "rainy day."

Mylar Bag of Beans by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 14:25

I know from past experiments / experience that beans can grow well in many growing mediums and don't require brand name soil. As long as they have required nutrients to grow life will find a way!

I'm obsessed with the Berkeley Composting Method which has given me soil in just 14 days! You'll probably hear me mention this method fairly frequently. Soil is like gold here on the island and since I'm in the tropical rainforest region, soil quickly gets washed away without enough mulch and volume.

Soil from the Berkely Method by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 14:27

I used the wet paper towel method mentioned in this thread to germinate my seeds. Meanwhile, it was time to figure out how to create a good growing medium. Beans don't require much nitrogen so I planned on planting them directly in a pot of the compost. I just happened to have a bone collection (it's not like I'm preparing for the end of the world or anything ) that I could ground up for the phosphorous source, and for potassium, I decided to use guava wood ash which lead me directly into another experiment.

Is it possible to burn guava wood that hasn't been dried out? This might happen if we get caught off guard one day.

Strawberry Guavas are insidious and invasive on this island... It's a good thing they're delicious by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 14:58

I got to work, and lopped the branches then cut and stuck them into the weber grill. It wasn't very easy to get it to light so I split and pulled apart the wood into thinner pieces. I did use some paper and laundry lint as tinder after awhile, and some prayers, we finally got a flame!

These guava branches are freshly lopped from the tree. by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 14:53

Once the fire was established, I multi-tasked and boiled the bones.

The bone collection! by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 17:01

It took 10 days for the seeds to germinate and show signs of life and it was a thrilling sight to see! As you can see, Alleyjandra is very impressed.

Bean_Progress by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 14:25

This is where we are at today. My excitement around beans has simmered down a bit since I am on Day #20 or Keto and beans aren't on the menu, but I think that this has still been a good experiment and I'll keep you updated!

Bean Experiment by Alanaana posted Mar 1, 2023 at 17:10

What are your thoughts and how would you do this differently? Happy Gardening!

 

To me the stocks look like pole beans .

Now Ms , Im just telling story's of what the girls do and grow .
I build the poles for them one is 7 foot tall and after it is up it's 6 to 6.5 tall tripod of 3 poles , 2 bean sprouts per pole / leg , the other is shorter due to shorter girls .
different beans in different gardens .

Harvest wood and dry in stacks , burn bones to make bone meal .
here the girls use an Airtight wood stove with bird, rabbit ,deer etc, bones.
No Sloth bones yet , But I've come close
S

 

@Cruisin Sloth I was thinking that they are probably pole beans since the stems are lanky. It's really considerate that you built the poles in varying heights. That will be so helpful when it's time to harvest. I will need to build a short pole because I'm 4'11" I will also need to create a fence to keep the chickens out because they feel entitled to everything at all times. Before the chickens adopted me I had a massive garden. I cherish the excellent bug control, but without fencing and a greenhouse the seedlings don't stand a chance unless it's peppers, bittermelon, and pineapples.

Thanks for sharing your process!

Btw, have you dealt with leaf miners? I get them a lot here and the locals all swear by neem oil which I use when I remember, but I'm always looking for alternate options.

 

you harvest those as the bean pods are 6-7 " long all growing season , then dry and shuck ( my job) when dry , then dry more as been turns colour .
4,11 needs 6.5foot legs , your reach is 6 foot and they hang down.
I'm not allowed to pick or weed anything !!
S

 

Beans are funny. Sometimes treated, so they won't germinate. Sometimes not. I wanted to grow some anasazi beans last year, but the ones I had were either treated, or just too darn old....so I spent a few bucks, and got some from a seller, on Amazon. Those grew great!
The beauty of beans, though, is that once you get some that grow, you can save the dried beans, and grow more.

 

@Cruisin Sloth Thank you! This is good to know height-wise. I have only grown bush beans before.
We have a kind of tree here called an ice cream bean. I planted a seedling 3 years ago and this year it will hopefully start producing fruit, but I regret not staying on top of the pruning. It has become an absolute skyscraper. I'll definitely post updates if fruit happens this year.

 

@natshare
Yes, that was my exact concern because these beans came from amazon and I wasn't sure if they were treated or not. I was actually surprised that they germinated. It was thrilling to see them poke through.

This is exactly the reason why I wanted to become proficient at bean growing because it's easy to keep growing more!
It's awesome that you're growing anasazi beans. They are delicious and they look so cool.

 

My grandparents grew their garden every year with seeds and beans saved from the previous year ,, beans , taters , tomatoes, corn, etc . Grandma would lay them out on paper towels to dry ,, and wrap in a wet paper towel to germinate the following year .

 

@SB21 I think that's such a beautiful tradition worth carrying on.

 

There may be something to the peroxide soak. I took cherry tomato seeds from the same pack. Soaked some in peroxide for about an hour, and some others with no soak. The soaked ones are sprouting, and so far none of the others have. Did some early start tomatoes too. Same thing.
However, I tried cucumber seeds also. No bueno. Which to me is unusual, usually cucumber seeds will sprout using the paper towel method, planted directly in the ground or potting soil starter mix. I've found some that had sprouted before, that I had dropped when I was planting the others in the garden. Maybe the seeds are bad. Or maybe it's Mother Nature.

 

@livin' in the woods I haven't tried this yet, but I think you're onto something! I read more about using hydrogen peroxide to germinate seeds and learned that if the hydrogen peroxide is diluted, the seeds can absorb more oxygen and speed up germination. The type of seed can make a difference too. It seems like cereal seeds took well to this process.
Thank you for sharing updates! That is interesting about the cucumbers.

 

@Alanaana
Hope it works for you. I need to try it on new seeds. Originally I was hoping it worked reviving old seeds I had.

 

Last year, because I rent (and don't want to go digging up the yard), I ended up growing everything in containers. Likely doing the same thing this year, as my lease is thru November.
I ended up with ~1/2 pound of anasazi beans harvested. Not too bad, for only about 8-10 plants, and a relatively short growing season here, in western NY. I can't plant beans until mid-May, and by early October, it's getting cold enough that they're pretty much done for the year.
I've taken 5 random beans, from what I harvested, and am going to do the paper towel trick, with some grow lights and a heat mat, to see how my germination rate is, on the beans I grew. If it's looking good, I'm likely to offer some up, for whomever might want to try them out. I'm estimating I got over 200 beans, so sending out packages of 20 would give me about 10 packets to give away.

More on that, after I see how the germination experiment goes!

 

@natshare I think that container gardening is So practical. That is an awesome harvest for that many plants. How exciting! I looking forward to seeing more of your updates!

 

I also have bean seeds to share, my problem is sending across border , I have a very good bunch of friends in WA state that I can receive and when I'm down , I send from Arlington WA .
Sloth

 

When I did the paper towel thing. I would take the paper towel/seed pack, wet it , and put it on top of my water heater on a coffee can plastic lid. Its always warm and dark there. So no need for a heat mat. When it didn't work, it was because I didn't check it every day and it would dry out.
I wonder if putting a container on top of it would help retain the moisture? Something to think about if some of you might want to try one covered and one not for a side by side test.