1. Walla Walla Onions;
2. Valencia Onions, and
3. Kiwi (taken from an organic Kiwi I was eating that day).
I hope, in sharing this experiment with others, you can learn from my mistakes and my successes. Come be a mad scientist, er, gardener with me.
I planted four organic Walla Walla seeds per 4 inch pot, using 6 pots total I should end up with 24 plants. I put them under a mini-greenhouse I purchased last year at IKEA for $20 and put a seed heating mat under them and a plastic bag over them to keep in the moisture. So far, about twelve seeds have germinated in five days. Take a look at the gallery below for pictures.
I planted five organic Valencia seeds in one larger pot. (See the gallery for a visual.) At the time, I didn't have a large grow station set up yet so I was running out of room. I covered it with a pie lid left over from the holidays to keep in the warmth and moisture. So far, no germination. Let's keep our fingers crossed on this one. I think I might have gotten the soil a bit too moist. Time will tell.
Lastly, I was eating a kiwi that day and thought, "Hey, I wonder if I can grow this." Sure enough, I found a great article that got me started. Currently, they are in stage one where they are soaking in a small bowl of water for a week. Wednesday, I take them out of the water and put them on a damp paper towel and cover them with plastic for a couple of days until they germinate. I'll then plant them in pots similar to the Walla Walla onions. Again, I have a picture in the gallery below to give you an idea.
Two great articles on seed germinating are:
1. From my favorite magazine, Mother Earth News, Best Tips for Starting Seeds Indoors; and
2. From another great magazine, Organic Gardening, 14 Tips for Starting Your Own Seeds.