Chillicothe and Ross County Public Library invites beginning gardeners to plant a seed
The Seed Library has been restocked, so that can only mean one thing: It’s time to start garden planning! A large Seed Library is located at the Main Library on Paint Street, and satellite collections are available at all other library branches, including the Bee Mobile Library.
Patrons are invited to “check out” up to five packs of seeds per library visit. However, there is no “due date” for this library material. We just hope that you grow some wonderful flowers and crops, and that you consider saving seed and re-donating some to the Seed Library at the end of the growing season. Seed donations are accepted from individuals, local businesses and organizations, and seed vendors throughout the year to keep the Seed Library growing.
If you’re interested in gardening and want to try it out, but feel overwhelmed by the possibilities, start small. Try to grow one vegetable, one flower, and/or one herb this year, just to see how simple and rewarding the process can be.
Here are some seeds that are extremely easy to sow and grow in southern Ohio’s Zone 6. All of these can be direct sown into the soil after our last frost date, which is usually around mid-May.
Vegetables:
Bush or pole beans – Pick bush beans often and they’ll keep producing. Leave pole beans on the vine all season and let them dry out. In the fall, pick them and bring them inside to shell them and you’ll have delicious dry beans for soup.
Cucumbers – Try a white variety like “Silver Slicer” or “Dragon’s Egg.” They have thin skins that don’t even need peeled before eating.
Zucchini – Zucchini are so prolific, you’ll be sneaking them onto your neighbor’s porch by summer’s end. Grate it and freeze it for yummy zucchini bread all year round.
Squash and pumpkins – These need a good bit of water to grow well, but there’s nothing like pie made from fresh, homegrown pumpkin puree. Many squash, like butternut, are perfect for making pies, too. Just roast the whole squash or pumpkin, scoop out the flesh, and puree it in a blender for the perfect pie filling.
Leafy greens – Lettuce, kale, and mustard are all really easy to grow from seed. Start them early, before the last spring frost. They like the chilly nights and warming days. Lettuce, especially, will go to seed if it gets too hot outside.
Flowers:
Zinnias – These are my absolute favorite flower. They are so easy to grow and come in a multitude of colors and sizes. I’m partial to the big fluffy ones – the cactus variety, big Benary’s Giant blooms, or pretty ombre pastels.
Marigolds – These are pretty much the most basic garden flower in our area, but for good reason. They grow easily from seed and make great pest traps. Lots of bugs will feed on your marigolds instead of your food crops, so plant them together for maximum effect.
Cosmos – Everyone loves these wispy yet hardy flowers. Some in my garden have grown over 8 feet high. They are extremely easy to grow from seed.
Sunflowers – The hardest part of growing sunflowers is making sure birds don’t eat your seeds before they sprout. Either start them in small pots or Dixie cups and then plant them once they sprout, or, if you bury them in the ground, add some hardware cloth or other obstruction on top of them that will let light and water through, but discourage birds from reaching the seeds.
Herbs:
Basil – Holy, cinnamon, lemon, sweet, purple, Greek, cardinal, globe – Basil comes in so many different varieties that smell and taste amazing. Holy basil is my favorite smell in the whole world. I think it smells like blueberry muffins. Growing basil next to tomatoes is said to make the tomatoes more flavorful.
Dill – Dill is necessary if you’re going to make pickles out of your cucumbers! Luckily, it’s easy to grow from seed.
Cilantro – A salsa garden is what got me gardening in the first place. I started with tomatoes, peppers, garlic, onions, and cilantro. But then again, I don’t think cilantro tastes like soap! Bonus: If you let cilantro go to seed, you get coriander.
For more information about the Seed Library, visit CRCPL.org/seeds or contact Access Director Jenn Slone at [email protected].
Jenn Slone, who is the CRCPL Access Director, is also CRCPL’s informal gardening expert and “Crazy Plant Lady.” She sows thousands of seeds into milk jugs in January and currently has about 500 plants growing under lights in her basement. By Jenn Slone, CRCPL Access Director
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: CRCPL invites beginning gardeners to plant a seed