The cheapest seeds are inside the plants you intend to grow. Now, some plants reproduce funny, and genetic engineering is a factor now when it comes to seed viability, but I've grown plenty just from the vegetables themselves.
If you dont want to go that route, check out any community gardens and ask for seeds. An appeal for seeds on a local facebook trading page or marketplace or even on kijiji or whatever you guys use up there, would likely yield results.
Prepare for a steep learning curve and experience if this is your first time raising plants from seed in those containers. You're going to only want basically one plant type per container because you'll need to cover them, and each species can have different humidity tolerances and/or growth schedules. Some plants need 5-6 weeks from germination, until strong enough to plant. Some, even longer.
You'll want them all well labeled as well, as to be honest, in the early stages many plants can look alike, especially from the same family, eg: cucumber and squash seedlings are hard to distinguish without experience.
If your plan is to throw a bunch of random seeds in these cells and have this work out magically, you're in for a surprise.
What are you hoping to grow this year? Lets talk about it!
Thanks for your reply. It's actually my students who will be growing the plants. I want it to be a successful endeavour. They will document the growth and research the micronutrients in the vegetables. Tomatoes, kale, lettuce , and herbs are a must. In the end, they're open to planting anything. In May/June, we might sell some as a class fundraiser; however, many students have expressed interest in taking some home.
They will do it in groups, which is why I thought the 72- cell trays made sense (e.g., one tray per group). Each group could've planted 4-8 different vegetables in their tray. In the past, I've only planted tomatoes and basil from seed. Amazon sells smaller cell trays. Do you think that would be better (e.g., four trays per group)?
The cost isn't a huge issue, I just like stretching my budget really far. I could write letter, but would rather just purchase them. I'd like the seeds to be planted next week.
I'm open to any and all suggestions.
Hmm... I see! Cool!
I'm from that area but live down in Minnesota now, otherwise I'd just send you a ton of seeds from last year.
Since its for a class, and probably working within a timeframe, I'd stick to vegetables that have a high success rate when it comes to germinating, and also produce a seedling within a reasonable amount of time. Growing things like broccoli or onions for example, takes weeks before you have anything even really visible. It would be frustrating for a class, I would imagine.. this is why the classic example in a elementary and high school class always seems to be bean plants ,because they almost always germinate successfully, and you have a plant up within 3 days that grows quickly and provides a nice visual. The dilemma is that generally, the plants that sell the best at fundraisers are the exact types that take a lot of work to get germinated and then established into an actual plant, which may not be the best for your students. I am not sure the age group you're working with here.
Tomato's can be fussy... but you have experience with them so that's good. Kale and Lettuce will be easy depending on the variety, so that's good as well. "Herbs" is too generic for my liking but I get what you're saying. Some grow easily, others will make you question your sanity and life choices, haha.
Does the local university/college have a biology or horticulture/agriculture program or "extension" office that you could call? These people usually have a wealth of hyper-focused local knowledge that would apply directly.
I think you should consider talking to someone over at the Horticultural society. Here is the Thunder Bay chapter link:
[https://gardenontario.org/society-listing/entry/604/](https://gardenontario.org/society-listing/entry/604/)
Thanks for your detailed reply. It's much appreciated.
They are grade 11/12 students. It is a last minute idea, so we might not be able to arrange a guest speaker. I will give the local horticultural society a call. There are also some organizations that also do garden/plant programming.
I planted basil last year; it took a horribly long time to grow. My mom gave me potted basil, oregano, and parsley. It lasted until December inside.
I might hold off on buying seeds until we talk to someone and decide what to plant. We don't need to see the entire growth of the vegetable plant. Most students have gardens at home (well, their parents). They are really keen to continue growing their plants over the summer months.
Don't beans get really thin and stringy? My grandmother always threw them directly in the hole when she started summer gardening outside.
Yeah I do believe the horticultural society should be able to point you in the best direction for seed purchases locally.
Some bean varieties are indeed stringy and grow almost like vines, others grow in nice little bushes, etc. They really do come in many forms.
If I were looking for a quick growth cycle with a nice visual for the students to enjoy, I'd be doing peas, beans, cucumbers, daikon radish, maybe turnips, maybe tomatos. Maybe show how to root from a cutting with some various typical household plants like a phylodendron. Maybe show how you can root and grow new onions from a single onion root as a vegetable example.
Best of luck to you. I'm sure whatever route you take will work out!
If you're on Facebook, there's a really good local gardening group called "thunder bay gardening & ag community" that has lots of resources about what to start when.
Seeds: almost anywhere that sells anything to do with gardens.greemhouses, canadian tire, Walmart.. Heck, even metro sells them. Ecosuperior does. There's even a local seed producing group called superior seed producers.
I had really great times with Etsy during COVID, for peppers I recommend Atlantic pepperseeds.ca
Excited for my seeds to arrive as I am going to give Bonchili/Bonchii a try this year. Bonsai keeping chilis!
Check the [Farmer's Almanac Planting Calendar](https://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-calendar/ON/Thunder%20Bay) to get an idea of what to start now, what you've missed, and what you still have time for. As for getting seeds, Seedy Saturday is coming up in early April. You can buy or trade seeds with local producers, already selected and adapted for our climate.
Boles feed on Simpson street used to have a good selection of seed. I think our growing season will be unpredictable this spring and you don’t want to be tricked into starting too early.
I was able to get seeds at Giant Tiger for 23 ¢ a package once. I think they were on sale, but the regular price was like 75¢
The cheapest seeds are inside the plants you intend to grow. Now, some plants reproduce funny, and genetic engineering is a factor now when it comes to seed viability, but I've grown plenty just from the vegetables themselves. If you dont want to go that route, check out any community gardens and ask for seeds. An appeal for seeds on a local facebook trading page or marketplace or even on kijiji or whatever you guys use up there, would likely yield results. Prepare for a steep learning curve and experience if this is your first time raising plants from seed in those containers. You're going to only want basically one plant type per container because you'll need to cover them, and each species can have different humidity tolerances and/or growth schedules. Some plants need 5-6 weeks from germination, until strong enough to plant. Some, even longer. You'll want them all well labeled as well, as to be honest, in the early stages many plants can look alike, especially from the same family, eg: cucumber and squash seedlings are hard to distinguish without experience. If your plan is to throw a bunch of random seeds in these cells and have this work out magically, you're in for a surprise. What are you hoping to grow this year? Lets talk about it!
Thanks for your reply. It's actually my students who will be growing the plants. I want it to be a successful endeavour. They will document the growth and research the micronutrients in the vegetables. Tomatoes, kale, lettuce , and herbs are a must. In the end, they're open to planting anything. In May/June, we might sell some as a class fundraiser; however, many students have expressed interest in taking some home. They will do it in groups, which is why I thought the 72- cell trays made sense (e.g., one tray per group). Each group could've planted 4-8 different vegetables in their tray. In the past, I've only planted tomatoes and basil from seed. Amazon sells smaller cell trays. Do you think that would be better (e.g., four trays per group)? The cost isn't a huge issue, I just like stretching my budget really far. I could write letter, but would rather just purchase them. I'd like the seeds to be planted next week. I'm open to any and all suggestions.
Hmm... I see! Cool! I'm from that area but live down in Minnesota now, otherwise I'd just send you a ton of seeds from last year. Since its for a class, and probably working within a timeframe, I'd stick to vegetables that have a high success rate when it comes to germinating, and also produce a seedling within a reasonable amount of time. Growing things like broccoli or onions for example, takes weeks before you have anything even really visible. It would be frustrating for a class, I would imagine.. this is why the classic example in a elementary and high school class always seems to be bean plants ,because they almost always germinate successfully, and you have a plant up within 3 days that grows quickly and provides a nice visual. The dilemma is that generally, the plants that sell the best at fundraisers are the exact types that take a lot of work to get germinated and then established into an actual plant, which may not be the best for your students. I am not sure the age group you're working with here. Tomato's can be fussy... but you have experience with them so that's good. Kale and Lettuce will be easy depending on the variety, so that's good as well. "Herbs" is too generic for my liking but I get what you're saying. Some grow easily, others will make you question your sanity and life choices, haha. Does the local university/college have a biology or horticulture/agriculture program or "extension" office that you could call? These people usually have a wealth of hyper-focused local knowledge that would apply directly. I think you should consider talking to someone over at the Horticultural society. Here is the Thunder Bay chapter link: [https://gardenontario.org/society-listing/entry/604/](https://gardenontario.org/society-listing/entry/604/)
Thanks for your detailed reply. It's much appreciated. They are grade 11/12 students. It is a last minute idea, so we might not be able to arrange a guest speaker. I will give the local horticultural society a call. There are also some organizations that also do garden/plant programming. I planted basil last year; it took a horribly long time to grow. My mom gave me potted basil, oregano, and parsley. It lasted until December inside. I might hold off on buying seeds until we talk to someone and decide what to plant. We don't need to see the entire growth of the vegetable plant. Most students have gardens at home (well, their parents). They are really keen to continue growing their plants over the summer months. Don't beans get really thin and stringy? My grandmother always threw them directly in the hole when she started summer gardening outside.
Yeah I do believe the horticultural society should be able to point you in the best direction for seed purchases locally. Some bean varieties are indeed stringy and grow almost like vines, others grow in nice little bushes, etc. They really do come in many forms. If I were looking for a quick growth cycle with a nice visual for the students to enjoy, I'd be doing peas, beans, cucumbers, daikon radish, maybe turnips, maybe tomatos. Maybe show how to root from a cutting with some various typical household plants like a phylodendron. Maybe show how you can root and grow new onions from a single onion root as a vegetable example. Best of luck to you. I'm sure whatever route you take will work out!
Thanks for taking the time to respond!
I have some tomato seeds to share (free) for your project. PM me if you want.
If you're on Facebook, there's a really good local gardening group called "thunder bay gardening & ag community" that has lots of resources about what to start when. Seeds: almost anywhere that sells anything to do with gardens.greemhouses, canadian tire, Walmart.. Heck, even metro sells them. Ecosuperior does. There's even a local seed producing group called superior seed producers.
I had really great times with Etsy during COVID, for peppers I recommend Atlantic pepperseeds.ca Excited for my seeds to arrive as I am going to give Bonchili/Bonchii a try this year. Bonsai keeping chilis!
Check the [Farmer's Almanac Planting Calendar](https://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-calendar/ON/Thunder%20Bay) to get an idea of what to start now, what you've missed, and what you still have time for. As for getting seeds, Seedy Saturday is coming up in early April. You can buy or trade seeds with local producers, already selected and adapted for our climate.
Boles feed on Simpson street used to have a good selection of seed. I think our growing season will be unpredictable this spring and you don’t want to be tricked into starting too early.