Our seed order from Johnny's Seeds is finally here! I am very excited to get my intern project rolling. The plants I selected for the seed trial are Borage ,Nevada and Muir OG summer crisp lettuce, Genovese Basil, Sweet Thai Basil, Provider Bush Beans, Sorrel, and Astro Arugula. Unfortunately, some of the seed that I ordered were back-ordered and I was unable to use them in my project. The reason I wanted to do this trial is to see if there is any benefit to planting organic seed compared to the conventional seeds available. I believe that many people may be inclined to buy organic seed because they equate it to being non GMO. It is true that it is non-GMO, but so are the seeds that would be available to the average gardener. I believe that when done correctly organic farming is healthier and more sustainable, however from what I have seen is that the organic standards are not well enforced on a large scale. I want to see if organic seed performs better in any way and is worth the slightly higher price per seed. To test this I got a conventional and organic seed packet for every vegetable. Over the next few weeks, I will be monitoring germination rates, growth, pest pressure, and taste (when possible). Everything except the Borage and beans were started in seed trays. I put two seeds in each cell to hopefully ensure that I would have at least one plant per cell. The seeds were super tiny though and I did not always put just two, I will have to take this into account when I am calculating germination rates. I found that covering each row after I put the seed in the cell helped me keep track, I just wish I had started that on the first couple of trays! After I finished planting all the seeds, I took the trays to the greenhouse and watered the seeds in. I can't wait to see my little baby plants pop up! It was rather cold at the beginning of this week so we waited until it warmed up to start my bush beans. We planted the beans 4" apart on alternating sides to ensure that they would all have enough room to grow and not have to compete. I split the space in half and put the conventional bush beans at the front of the row and the organic variety behind it. When we were done planting the beans we let the drip line run for a while to make sure the soil was nice and moist to aid in germination. I am hoping the temperature does not drop again now that my beans are in the ground. As I mentioned earlier, we had a bout of cold weather earlier this week. The freeze caused some damage to our plants. Most of the plants were able to snap back later in the week, but some did not come back around. Never know what the weather is going to be like in Texas, I am hoping for fair weather as I begin to plant out my project.
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AuthorHi! My name is Gabrielle Melchor and I am a senior undergraduate student in the horticulture science department. After graduation, I hope to pursue a career in nursery management and production or urban green space development. If you have any questions about my internship or would just like to talk plants, you can find me at the Howdy Farm. Gig 'em! Archives
April 2019
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The Howdy Farm at Texas A&M University | Gabrielle's Blog |