Some of our direct sows are just starting to emerge! We’re happy to see a few radish poking their heads out. That means we aren’t far from having home grown produce!
One of the skill sets direct sow gardeners need to develop is the ability to identify their intentionally sown seeds against native seeds (aka weeds). When you’re top watering pretty much any soil, its inevitable that both are going to germinate. One of them belongs in the garden, one should be removed. Plant identification is vital skill for any gardener, so this stuff isn’t just for beginners!
Fortunately, most of our commonly grown vegetables are pretty distinctive and they will look nothing like weeds. But, this can be a little intimidating for newer growers, since many of these seedlings you might be seeing for the very first time! If that’s you, just know that every gardener goes through this learning process!
This is one of the reasons we recommend having a plan, so you know generally know what you are planting and where. It’s certainly valid to label things as you direct sow them, especially if you’re still learning the ropes of plant identification at various stages. This also helps anchor the visual appearances into your memory.
If you’re really not sure, you can always do a bit of research by looking for pictures of a given seedling. This is also one of the reasons we do a lot of close-up photography ourselves, it provides a clear view of what’s going on and is easier to associate with the real world.
Some types of seedlings can definitely throw some challenge. We could see how it might be possible to confuse a freshly germinated carrot with a blade of grass, should you not know that the carrot will have a split top. We could also see how it’d be easy to mix up a weed with a Swiss chard, they often share several similarities initially. There’s quite a few other examples, too, but these are the nuances you’ll learn.
We will tell you, even to this day we regularly practice plant identification. We regularly make an effort to positively identify seedlings (without looking at the label), especially with ones that we’re not able to “immediately” recall. Even after 25 years of growing, we still have weak spots in our identification ability. Particularly with flowers, since we grow such a diversity. Or, we’re growing something new to us and even we have never seen it before. Identification is a skill you should constantly develop.
This skill is super valuable to have, so practicing it on a regular basis is the way to build it up. It speeds up things like weeding and also generally builds confidence in your growing prowess. Plus, you’ll amaze your non-growing friends with your abilities!
