So cute!

I am trying to do better with my vegetable gardening this year... we're going to build some nice raised beds (instead of the inadequate wine barrel planters I have used the last two years) and I've actually started some seeds already. I made an effort to choose to plant things that I actually use often in my everyday cooking, to hopefully help shave some dollars off our summertime grocery bill.

I wanted to go low-budget and low-impact, so I re-purposed some old worn out metal baking trays, set my planted peat pots on top (each pot labeled with permanent marker), and put some inverted clear plastic tubs over the top (old storage bins that were no longer in use for anything important). Matt drilled a few holes around the sides of the plastic tubs to allow some circulation in my makeshift hothouses, and I was good to go. I've been watering them from the bottom (by just putting some water in the cookie sheets) to encourage their little roots to grow downward, and I mist them occasionally from above. They are in a fairly warm indoor location most of the time, and when the sun comes out I set them out on the porch for a few hours at a time.

My track record with gardening (especially with indoor plants) is not exactly stellar, so I'm a little nervous... imagine my surprise and delight to find these sweet little babies poking their fresh little green selves up towards the sun yesterday, just five days after planting!

broccoli babies

zucchini babies

So far my broccoli, zucchini, basil, spinach, and lettuce have already made appearances. I'm still waiting on the tomatoes and bell peppers, but I'm hopeful... the guy at the feed store said I could plant the carrots, onions, and snap peas directly in the ground.

My plan is to start a second round of seedlings after I've set these first ones outside in the raised beds, so I can have several waves of ripe produce throughout the season. If any of you seasoned gardeners have any tips or pointers for newbie veggie gardeners like me, feel free to pass 'em on!