sprouted seeds

I'm sprouting my own seeds for the first time this year. Several questions.

• The peas obviously didn't have enough verm. on top of them, as they are now poking up out of it. No leaves yet, just the seed. Should I add a fresh layer?
  
• My weather is very mild right now. Can I stick them outside and just bring them in when it's going to be extra cold at night? How cold is extra cold? 32? Or higher than that?
  
• I've currently got my store-bought broc and cauli seedlings outside for that same reason, and they seem to be doing well. How long can I keep them in their store-bought containers before I have to plant or transplant them? I don't want them to become root-bound, but I think it may be too early to have them live outside.
  

I think that's it for now, but I'm sure I'll come up with more.
Thanks y'all.

jazzymaddy wrote:I'm sprouting my own seeds for the first time this year. Several questions.

• The peas obviously didn't have enough verm. on top of them, as they are now poking up out of it. No leaves yet, just the seed. Should I add a fresh layer?
  
• My weather is very mild right now. Can I stick them outside and just bring them in when it's going to be extra cold at night? How cold is extra cold? 32? Or higher than that?

When I am getting ready to plant peas, I let them soak overnight in a jar of water and drain them the next morning. I will keep a loose lid on the jar and rinse the seeds once a day. Once the peas begin sprouting I plant them directly in the garden and will have the trellis already set up. I prefer to sprout peas in the house before planting because they have a less than 98% germination rate and I want every seed I plant into the garden to be viable. They can tolerate quite cold and prefer cool conditions. Read more about peas here.

jazzymaddy wrote:

• I've currently got my store-bought broc and cauli seedlings outside for that same reason, and they seem to be doing well. How long can I keep them in their store-bought containers before I have to plant or transplant them? I don't want them to become root-bound, but I think it may be too early to have them live outside.
  

I think that's it for now, but I'm sure I'll come up with more.
Thanks y'all.

Broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts are all cold tolerant and transplanting into the garden early is not a bad thing. No need to let them sit in the little trays. If they have come from a hot house environment be sure to harden off before transplanting. More info about brassicas here.

jazzymaddy wrote:I'm sprouting my own seeds for the first time this year. Several questions.

• The peas obviously didn't have enough verm. on top of them, as they are now poking up out of it. No leaves yet, just the seed. Should I add a fresh layer?
  
• My weather is very mild right now. Can I stick them outside and just bring them in when it's going to be extra cold at night? How cold is extra cold? 32? Or higher than that?
  
• I've currently got my store-bought broc and cauli seedlings outside for that same reason, and they seem to be doing well. How long can I keep them in their store-bought containers before I have to plant or transplant them? I don't want them to become root-bound, but I think it may be too early to have them live outside.
  

I think that's it for now, but I'm sure I'll come up with more.
Thanks y'all.

I try to follow the directions when planting, so if you didn't sufficiently cover the seeds, you might want to cover them up just a bit.

Fresh sprouts always seem to bring out the critters in my garden (mainly snails). Therefore, I often plant a lot more seeds than I think I'll need and even though it kills me, I thin them as needed (they say you can actually eat the young pea sprouts).

Broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower can take a light frost, so transplanting them now and using a cold frame might be a good idea, especially if you've hardened them off for a few days already.

I'm the kind of person that enjoys being thrifty with some things. I'm told that you can often get clear plastic from furniture and/or mattress stores. Since the transplants aren't tall, it won't take much plastic and some small sticks ought to work just fine in keeping the plastic off the plants.