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Home gardeners are starting to get the itch to get their yearly heirloom seed starting tradition under way about now. In some parts of the country it is warm enough that folks are able to direct sow cool season crops into their gardens, while in others it is time to start seeds inside to get them big and sturdy enough to transplant once the frosts have passed.

This leads to something of an eternal question- how do I start my seeds and what is the best method? If you are new to this series of articles, you might want to read Successful Heirloom Seed Starting for the Home Gardener where we show the equipment and space needed to be successful in starting your seeds at home, and Seed Starting Media for the Home Gardener, which examines the different materials used in making up a great seed starting media, and why you should use them. This will bring you up to speed on everything that brings us to this article and video.

Heirloom seed starting is actually pretty easy and straight forward, once a couple of basics are understood. The whole reason for starting seeds inside is to get a jump-start on the season by growing vegetable plants like tomatoes, peppers and eggplant inside to a stage where they are able to produce much earlier than if their seeds were directly sown into the garden soil once the frosts have passed. For example- it is common to start tomatoes 6-8 weeks or up to 2 months early inside, then transplant them into the garden. This means for many parts of the country that tomatoes will be ripe in late June or early July instead of September, as they would be if planted directly.

You can use this technique to your advantage and start a few select plants much earlier and have a small harvest within a couple of weeks of transplanting, then stagger some starts every couple of weeks for a month. What this will accomplish is the same as succession planting in the garden with carrots, beets, radishes, etc.- it gives you a continuous harvest of the vegetables that are in demand over a longer season without flooding you with too much at once, then having it all run out later. This is exactly the technique that highly successful market growers use to have a full stand for the first Farmer’s Market, as well as having produce for the year-round CSA. They will start everything– lettuce, beets, tomatoes, peppers, kale, Swiss chard, mustard, spinach- inside and transplant to the hoop-house or high tunnel once they are big enough to handle whatever season they are being planted into. Eliot Coleman has been perfecting this method for 30 years in Maine where he grows year-round without heating the growing houses.

We have prepared a new video showing how we do seed starting for our trial garden and food production here at Terroir Seeds. There are several methods that we share with you, as there are many ways to reach the same goal. Please enjoy and as always let us know your questions and thoughts!

by Stephen Scott

Recipes

Catanian Wheat and Lentil Soup

Catania is an old city on the south-east coast of Sicily, fronting the Ionian Sea. During the Renaissance, Catania was Sicily’s most important cultural, artistic, and political hub due in part to its major seaport. In 1434 the first university in Sicily was founded and today it is one of the main economic centers of the island and an important hub of technology and industry.

Cantine del Cugno Mezzano, located on the Via Museo Biscari is one of the chic restaurants in the old downtown that are reviving the ancient farm cuisines and elevating them to fine dining status. What is notable is that the flavors need no “freshening” or “elevating”, only the surroundings and atmosphere is needed to create the fine dining experience. The old recipes and locally sourced farm-grown ingredients are what make the flavors so memorable. The chef drives out to the surrounding countryside every weekend and goes from farm to farm on a well-established routine buying the foundations for the next week’s dishes.

This is a substantial and deeply satisfying, yet not heavy winter soup that has sustained farm families and farmhands for many generations. It is eaten during the cooler weather in Sicily on the farms, but is in demand year round in the restaurants. Get the best quality sausage possible, as it is the foundation of the flavors here. The smoked sweet and bittersweet paprika will add an intriguing depth of flavor to the soup, with the oregano backing them up. Another option to broaden the flavor profile is to use a home made beef stock instead of the water in the lentils, or split it in half. This freezes well to provide a delicious backup when time is short or plans change during the week.

Add some thick slices of fresh artisan peasant bread with butter and a good beer for a taste of what our ancestors ate after a long workday in the fields!

Zuppa Di Grano e Lenticchie

1 Cup Wheat berries
1 Cup Lentils
6 Cups water
3 Oz Italian sausage, diced
2 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
2 medium carrots, sliced thickly
5 Oz Swiss chard or Kale leaves, stems removed, rinsed and coarsly chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Optional seasonings- 1/8 Tsp each of smoked sweet and bittersweet paprika, 1/2 Tsp oregano
Dollop of sour cream

In a small heavy bottomed pot cover the wheat berries with plenty of water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, remove from heat, cover and let sit for 1 hour. Drain and reserve the cooking water.
Using a cast-iron pot or flame proof clay pot, add lentils and cover with 6 cups of water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat so that the lentils are just above a simmer until they just start to turn tender, about 15-20 minutes.
While lentils are simmering, heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and onion and sautee for 5-7 minutes, until the onion just turns golden. Lower the heat, add the celery and carrots and cook until the carrots are just tender, about 10 minutes. Add the Swiss chard or Kale, stir in and cook until dark green and just wilted, about 3-5 minutes.
Add wheat berries and sausage and vegetable mixture and stir well. Season with salt, pepper and optional seasonings if using. Add enough wheat berry cooking water to cover slightly and bring back to a boil, immediately reduce heat to a bare simmer and heat soup through, about 3-5 minutes.
Add small dollop of sour cream if desired

Makes 6 servings

by Stephen Scott