Before I list the things I've started I want to say that I have had 100% success germinating Johnny's Selected Seeds. Other places I ordered over the net were: New England Seed Co., Victory Seed Co., Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, Millington Seed Co., Tomato Growers Supply Co., Trade Winds Fruit. I have three 4' X 9' raised beds. Two for cool crops. Later two for Tomatoes and one for peppers. The beans and other things will be planted in these beds as companion kind of plantings. I use crop covers and these will be staying on all summer. I'll remove the covers in the morning and they'll go back on about 10am (after the bees have left to cool their hives) A collection of plastic pop bottles filled with water hold down the crop covers. A collection of smaller glass bottles are placed wherever they can fit to accommodate our cold nights and frosts and freezes. There are 15 stakes, 18" high in each of the beds. Jute twine is criss-crossed every which way. This keeps the crop covers from whipping around so much and also will hold up the sheets and blankets I have to cover the beds with when there is going to be a frost or freeze. I use the plastic bottles that have held drinking water and put very small needle-size holes into the bottles to serve as my watering style. I plan to keep this watering style up -- it worked well with watering the rose plants and citrus trees last year (using gallon milk jugs) It conserves on the water big time and allows me to control exactly what gets watered. I also use this kind of watering to put the fish emulsion and epson salts or whatever into the ground. No problem with getting the leaves wet either. All of this is very time consuming -- I don't know if I'll be able to keep up with the pace. This is my first year with vegetables -- you probably can tell :) My husband says he thinks I'm overdoing "this whole thing". But I'm just learning, so there you go. Cool Crops: After germinating, these were placed in front of a window and got so leggy that I threw them out and started over. Now everything gets put a few inches below flouresant lights. Some are now in the raised gardens and covered with crop covers. When we've had freezes and frosts each bed gets covered with four sheets and thermal blankets. Early Scarlet Globe Radish, Victory Early Wonder Tall Top Round Red Beet, Johnny's Round Red Ace F1 Hybrid Beet, Johnny's Rio Verde Hybrid Cabbage, New England Seed Salad Bowl Lettuce, New England Seed Buttercruch Lettuce, New England Seed Romaine COS Lettuce, New England Seed Early Scarlet Globe Radish, Victory Bloomsdale Long Standing Spinach, Victory Savoyed Leaf Tyee F1 Hybrid Spinach, Johnny's Tomato: The Solar Fire doesn't want to get going. The Sun Gold is doing the best -- now about 5" tall. The Sun Gold gets very good reviews and is hard to come by (so is the Solar Fire). The Purple Cherokee is suppose to be fantastic tasting -- comeing from someone that works an organic business for profit. Amish Paste Eva Black Ball Brandywine Black Brandywine Purple Cherokee Solar Fire VFFF Hybrid, Tomatoe Growers Supply Sun Gold Cherry Pepper: All of these had just germinated and were setting out on the patio and a strong wind blew them off the table two days ago. Rats! All gone. There isn't going to be room under the lights to start these seeds over. I'll just have to figure on planting only one of each. Cayenne, Long Red, Victory Golden California Wonder, Victory Hungarian Yellow Wax (Hot Banana), Victory Hungarian Sweet, (Sweet Banana), Victory Pimento, Victory Insectuary & Companion Plantings: some seeds were planted in peat pots today and the rest will be direct-planted in a few weeks when I know for sure there will be no more frosts. Queen Sophia French Marigold, Johnny's Alaska Mix Nasturtium, Johnny's Genovese Basil, Ghorganics.com Sweet Basil, Ferry Morse Caraway, Victory German Chamomile, Victory Dill Bouquet, Victory Florence Fennel, Victory Feverfew, E-Bay Flying Saucers Morning Glory, E-Bay Italian Parsley, Victory Shasta Daisy, Victory Spearmint, Victory Creeping Thyme, Victory Yarrow, E-Bay Beans: Only the Contenders and Scarlet Runners are still around. I know better now, but I thought I had waited long enough for germination and decided they weren't going to germinate and threw them out. Blue Lake 274 Hybrid, Victory Contender Bush Bean, Victory McCaslin 42 Pole Bean, Baker Creek Roma II Bush Bean, Victory Scarlet Runner Bean, Millinton Seed Pray for me :)

That depends on the seed. I start tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, broccoli, and eggplant indoors right now. As for the starting lettuce and such outside with a dome, that's the basic idea behind Winter Sowing. Please see the Winter Sowing forum and read the FAQ. They detail a very easy and cheap way of getting quality seedlings outdoors in flats with little fuss and NO HARDENING OFF. You can even get tomato plants that way. Hope that helps! Here is a link that might be useful: Winter Sowing FAQ

Abby FWIW, cherry tomatoes do not necessarily grow well in a half whiskey barrel if you're thinking the plants are smaller than those of big tomatoes. Cherry tomato plants can grow to 16 feet tall, depending on the variety! Any smaller tomato plant can certainly be planted in a half whiskey barrel and do well though, determinates and indeterminates that grow to only 3-7 feet. Some kind of support for the taller plants if needed. As for winter sowing, the people who hang out at that forum probably have the answers you're looking for. They're nothing if not enthusiastic and helpful! And they have experience in winter-sowing all kinds of seeds. Winter sowing may be the answer for you if you don't have the inside room to start the plants. Here is a link that might be useful: Winter Sowing Forum

My tomatoes are up and reaching for the lights already. Nothing in yard is budding out yet, so i am feeling good about my late start. Planted about 12 varieties this year some new and some old favorites like Santorini Drying Tomato and Black Brandywine. Love the taste of heirlooms and so good for you organic out of your own garden. Carried cubanelle and pimento peppers over in greenhouse, but don't know if survived. Planted basil at same time as tomatoes and it is up too. Hope we have a late spring. And no more freezing.