Tomato plants, started from seed on March 25 and planted May 21, 2011.

Gardening is one of the greenest things you can do. It also saves you money, increases the quality of the food that you eat, increases your food security, and gives you a fun and healthy summer activity.

If you’re already gardening, the best way to “green” your gardening and save a ton of money is to start plants from seed instead of buying them as seedlings at the garden centre.

This year I started 60 tomato plants and 100 yellow onions from seed. I follow the Vriend’s planting calendar, which specifies the dates of February 25 and March 25 to plant onion and tomato seeds, respectively.

I am happy with my results. My tomato plants would cost about $3/each if I were to buy them, so I “made” $180 by putting seeds in pots and watering a few times. It’s really about the fun though. Gardening at the end of February is a great way to kick yourself out of winter mode a bit early.

Yellow onion seedlings

Onions planted in the ground from seedlings at the end of April.

Tomato, leek and eggplant (background) seedlings – all obtained for a few dollars in seeds and a couple of cans of water.

The critics will tell you that local organic food is elitist and out of reach and that it can’t feed the world. They’re leaning on a tired old paradigm though. If all or most of us become involved in our food, if we all become farmers to some degree, we can put an enormous dent into so many problems at once that it dizzies the mind.

It amazes me that solutions to such big problems can be so enjoyable, simple, and, in the end, delicious. It’s all pretty damn satisfying if you ask me.

Growing your own food is right up there with riding your bike when it comes to green acts. It doesn’t get more earth-friendly than the hundred foot diet.

With our short growing season, the tomatoes that we put in the ground in late May can’t be in seed form. Traditionally, Edmontonians head to their local nurseries when the time comes to buy tomato seedlings. With a bit of foresight, though, you can save yourself a bunch of money and reduce the impact of your tomatoes even further.

Seeds

A couple of weeks ago I bought some open-pollinated tomato seeds from the good people of A’bunadh Seeds (from Cherhill Alberta – they had a booth at Seedy Sunday this year). I’m no seed expert, but I believe that open-pollinated means that I can harvest my own seeds from the resulting tomatoes (as opposed to hybrid seeds).  Earth’s General Store sells some great seeds too.

Any old tomato seeds will do in a pinch though. I chose a yellow, cherry, paste and beefsteak varieties.

Soil

The way to start your own tomatoes from seed is to get a bunch of small containers, they could be anything from actual seedling containers to Tim Horton’s cups, and fill them with soil. The soil should come from your backyard. Conventional sources will always tell you to buy potting soil from your local Home Depot or nursery, but I’ve never done so.

Potting soil ranks up there with bottled water on the list of useless items that companies have manufactured demand for. One website claims “garden soil is not a good choice, as it compacts too easily and can harbour organisms that cause diseases.” So how exactly will your tomatoes grow in this disease-infested soil once you plant them in said garden? For large greenhouses that have disease problems, sterilized potting soil makes sense. For the backyard gardener, it’s just another example of diminishing returns on investment.

(fill some containers with backyard soil)

Once you have soil in containers, plant the tomato seeds about 1/8” deep. I labelled the containers with strips from an old Venetian blind that I found in the alley.

(pieces cut from old blinds make great signs to label plants with)  read more... »