How deep to plant

[Ridgerunner]

Canesisters asked what I think is an interesting question on another thread so I thought I'd see if we could generate enough interest to get a thread going on that topic. How deep do you plant a seed?

It's a good idea to check out what it says on the seed packet if they give directions or maybe look it up, but a general rule of thumb is to cover the seed with dirt three times the diameter of the seed.

Thats real general. You usually dont have to be that exact but it usually works better if you are somewhere close. But certain seeds have special needs or some will fool you. Beet or chard seeds for example. Those big seeds are not really the size of the seeds. They are clusters of several seeds. Youd think by the 3 times rule and the size of that cluster theyd need to go pretty deep, but they dont. If you plant them very deep they wont make it. I probably go with to with them, no deeper.

I dont know if there is any difference if you start different seeds inside versus direct planting them.

Some seeds need light to germinate, some seeds need dark, and some seeds dont care. Another reason to check, but Id think the size gives you a clue. If they need light they are probably really small where you just prepare the soil, spread the seeds on top of the ground and pat the soil down to firm it anyway. If they need dark, they should be pretty big seeds to start with.

One question I have for the experts, how do you determine the diameter of a seed? Im thinking of a squash or pumpkin seed thats pretty flat as an example. Then you get the difference in shape like a long narrow cucumber seed. Id assume you would go by width, not length or thickness but I usually get in trouble when I assume.

Marshall, is there a specific depth you plant you beans or does it vary with size? Any special considerations?

Seedcorn, how deep do you plant corn? Any special considerations?

Those are the two experts with specific crops I can think of this morning. Does anyone want to weigh on specific crops or just have something to share?

 

[canesisters]

I am sooo gonna follow this one!


I planted Southern Gentleman and Golden Bantam yesterday. The package said to plant 'at least 2inches'.

It didn't, however, say anything about point up or point down, or point sideways, or point toward the full moon....

 

[Southern Gardener]

I'd like to know about the corn. Not sure if I plant deep enough as the stalks always fall over with a slight breeze.

 

[digitS']

Well, with my snapdragon seed .

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I can just imagine someone with a pair of calipers trying to decide the diameter on those things . Ha!

Soil type must make a difference but I've found that raking a little gravel over them usually works . . . okay, I'll stop being factious . And, realize that many of the seeds I start never see the open garden until they arrive as seedlings. They go in nice fluffy potting soil.

The 3 times the diameter seems to me to be a good rule of thumb.

Obviously, snapdragon seed is so tiny that just sprinkling it on that fluffy potting soil is probably enuf. I go ahead and sprinkle just about the same amount of soil over it tho'. Okay, it may be 5 or 6 times as much but it is just a "dusting" and probably plays a role more in my imagination than on the seed. A symbolic gesture.

I wonder if there aren't a number of myths associated with planting seed. Once again, realize the soil type I have experience with. I know that sometimes the seedling will show that it has been put in a little shallow. I know that I can carefully remove a little soil wondering what happened in the garden and find that the seedlings are struggling to reach the surface. Still, I think that rain and irrigation has more to do with the conditions than my hoe and rake activity. For shallow seeded crops like lettuce and carrots, life begins pretty much on the soil surface and things can get real changeable there during the time it takes for germination. Still, the life that is in that seed is driven to send leaves up and roots down.

Here is a little tip for beginning gardeners - give your soil a little time to settle after cultivation before sowing seed. If cultivation has been very deep, you will be surprised how the "lay of the land" changes after a few days. Imagine yourself as a lettuce seed . . . it must be like being in a major earthquake zone!

Steve

 

[Mickey328]

Having just started a bunch and followed the instructions on the packages, I've noticed that in general the larger the seed, the deeper you should plant. Tomatoes and peppers and such all say about 1/4 inch, pumpkin and watermelon suggested about an inch.

I made my own mix of 1 part potting soil, 1 part perlite and 2 or 3 parts vermiculite. I planted the seeds not quite at the depth recommended and then put a thin layer of vermiculite over the top of the container. It's light so not hard for the seedling to push through, and it does help hold the moisture.

Size doesn't seem to be an indicator about germination time though...first up was a broccoli...medium-ish seed. Yesterday I had 2 watermelon sprouts pop their little heads up and this morning a pumpkin broke the soil....yaaay....green things!

 

[Ridgerunner]

I am sooo gonna follow this one!


I planted Southern Gentleman and Golden Bantam yesterday. The package said to plant 'at least 2inches'.

It didn't, however, say anything about point up or point down, or point sideways, or point toward the full moon....

She's talking about corn. Where's Seedcorn when you need him????

Don't worry about the orientation of the seed. I can't think of any seed from snapdragon to a peach pit where orientation would make a difference. The seed will sprout, roots will grow down toward gravity and the shoot will grow up away from gravity and toward the surface. At least I assume it's gravity that does that because it always seems to work that way.

I don't think it makes a difference with tubers like potatoes, though if I cut one it just seems right to put the cut side down and the sprouts up. I may have that backwards. Maybe the roots need to be lower down and the shoot will come up anyway? Or more likely it doesn't really matter.

Bulbs like onions, garlic or daffodils, yes it makes a difference. Same with things with crowns, like asparugus. I somehow got two garlic cloves up-side-down last fall when I planted them. One of those came up and was growing but I noticed the stem was going down before it curved up when I was weeding. I have no idea how that one would have developed. And one never really broke through to the surface. The shoot was yellow and curled around under ground.

 

[897tgigvib]

Howbout measuring the diameter of Orchid seeds?

1 40,000th of an angstrom? (whatever an angstrom is. sump'n really really teensy tiny).

Planting seeds in general: I found out during the lower paleolithic that burying seeds as deep as what the packet says does not work. My theory back then was that they wanted you to go back to the sawdust covered floor store that had barrels of pickles to go buy some more.

So I plant seeds less than half as deep as they say. Another theory is that seeds can tell if im the one panting them, and for some mystical reason im 'posed to plant them shallower than everyone else.

===

I have the soil all nice and fluffy before planting. Maan, cotton candy is not as fluffy.

I have the bean seeds in my left hand, 5 or so, the envelope near where I can reach, my back and knees as comfortably bent over, or else actually on my knees. I use the tip of my index finger to make a hole, poke a hole and swoosh it open a bit. How deep? (how long does a john deere last?) um, typical bean, say a flor de mayo, the bottom of the hole might be a half inch down, maybe less.

For beans, yes, i generally put the hilum eye facing down, but being all bent over, if it rolls on it's side while i pnch the soil over it, I'm not gonna worry 'boutit. Now, if'n i see it roll over eye up, without even so much as a durn it, i'll fix it eye down again. someone walking by might here me tell it to "stay".

Sometimes while germinating one washes up. i grab a handful of nice fluffy composty soil and cover it.

===

I kind of do the same with corn, but i dunno what difference it makes. Cane's gonna do the experiment with corn next year, I hope

 

[seedcorn]

Corn needs to be 1.5" deep to get all 3 sets of roots. Less than that, you'll lose one set. Measure where ground is level to top part of seed. 2" is safer since if you shoot for 1.5" but with a little rise, you could get 1.25"--one set of roots gone.

How you set it in ground is of no matter.

Corn plants falling over could be planting depth, could be chemical induced, could be insect damage (best guess--root worms) or could be rain with high winds. If you dig the roots up, wash them off, post picture and I can tell you what you are dealing with.

Beans, 3/4". With them it's about neck length.

 

[hoodat]

Be sure to check one thing first. Some seeds need light to germinate. Those should be sown right on top of the soil and then tamped with something like the flat side of a hoe to get good contact with the soil moisture. A problem with seeds like that is that most are very fine so it's hard to keep them watered without washing them out. The best way is to use a mister nozzle several times a day till you see some sprouting.

 

[canesisters]

Be sure to check one thing first. Some seeds need light to germinate. Those should be sown right on top of the soil and then tamped with something like the flat side of a hoe to get good contact with the soil moisture. A problem with seeds like that is that most are very fine so it's hard to keep them watered without washing them out. The best way is to use a mister nozzle several times a day till you see some sprouting.

I tried that, didn't work out so good for me. I must've done something wrong.
I had the little plastic seed sprouter on the kitchen island where I have, so far, done all of my 'gardening'. But when I tried to tamp the top with the hoe, I knocked out the lights in the pot hanger - got the handle caught up in it and nearly ripped it off the ceiling.



Sorry - being silly... done now.
Carry on.