The Growing Challenge – Seed To Seed

I have decided to take part in a couple of challenges this year to help inspire and motivate me. The first of these challenges is Melinda’s New Growing Challenge – from Seed to Seed at One Green Generation.

Last year I began trying to grow the majority of our veggies and I am now ready to begin learning how to save seeds for the next season.

Here are the rules for the challenge (the italics come direct from Melinda’s blog):

1. Plant at least one new crop from seed, grow it organically, and save the seed to plant next year.
Well, I already am growing my veggies from seed. I use open pollinated/heirloom seeds from Eden Seeds. I am using organic methods so I can check that one off too (of course there is more about organic gardening I need to learn). I have so far saved 2 types of seeds from my summer harvest – lazy housewife beans and a small pumpkin (I forget the name of it and I have lost the tag. I know, rookie mistake).
2. Check in here when I post Seed To Seed or Challenge posts (more or less once/week). Or if you have your own blog*, you can write about your gardening there instead – or in addition. The point of #2 is to learn from one another, inspire one another, and build our growing community. So please share questions, thoughts, and discoveries as they come up.
I will of course be posting regularly about the challenge and commenting on One Green Generation.
3. Sign up in the comments below!
That’s not my comments but the comments on One Green Generation. Interested in signing up? Here is the link direct to Melinda’s post.

So, what have I been doing in the garden lately?

Here is a photo of the seeds I have saved so far. The lazy housewife beans are on the right and the dried pods are beans I haven’t taken the seeds out of yet. The seeds on the left are pumpkin seeds. I bought pumpkin the seedling at a local nursery and lost the tag so I am not sure if I have an heirloom variety or not. The pumpkins were so yummy and it was a lovely compact plant that I figured I would see what happens. Pumpkins grow so quickly that it won’t take long to see if any fruit form or not. I will either get yummy pumpkins or compost fodder.


Here is a lettuce that has gone to seed. I need to cut the top off and put it in a paper bag to collect the seeds.


My summer veggies are pretty much finished. That week of 40oC plus temperatures really knocked them about so all I have are a couple of lettuce plants that haven’t bolted and a few bunches of tomatoes. I have begun to prepare the beds as they empty with some chook manure, compost and some dried grass clippings for mulch. In a month or so I will begin planting my autumn crop.

I have written about my seed purchasing frenzy here. And here are some pics of the some of the seeds I sowed the other week (I got a bit impatient).

Thai Basil

Dwarf Sweet Peas

From the left: Purple Basil, Lavender, Pennyroyal, Chervil