I don't know what it is about this plant, but I am starting to wonder if I will see any of my starts mature into a plant this summer! I have sown it every way: indoors, winter sown, and direct sown.
Direct sowing is out the window for next year. It took close to a month for the amaranth to germinate (the first two weeks of which were great weather), then when it did come up, the germination rate was very low. About a week and a half later all but two shrivled up in some hot weather (even with a healthy watering that morning).
Winter sowing went okay, again they were slow to germinate, popping up a few weeks after the direct sown ones. Now they are staying small. We will have to see how they compare to the indoor sown ones later in the season.
So far my indoor sown ones look the best. They are by far the largest with one set of true leaves fully open and a second set peaking out. Both other methods of sowing are yet to show even a hint of true leaves. I just planted out one of my indoor sown seedlings after hardening it off for several days. So far it looks pretty good, other than being a little leggy.
As of yesterday there were two direct sown (the smallest), two winter sown (sturdy but small), and one indoor sown (much further along growth wise) in a row in the garden. This morning I went out to check on all the plants and water where needed. When I arrived at the amaranth I only saw two seedlings left. Both of the direct sown and one of the winter sown had been hewn off at the stem base! Thankfully I have a few more winter sown still sitting in their plastic conatiner and I have one more indoor still in its peet pot. I have not had any cutworms and did not find one when I dug down underneath the plants. Who knows what did it, but if it keeps up I will soon be calling it quits for the amaranth.
No comments:
Post a Comment