Spring Seedlings

Seedlings begin to sprout at the Thames River Melons family farm in Innerkip Ontario Canada.

A couple of weeks ago I told you all about our greenhouse preparation process. Since then we’ve been filling trays with soil, planting & germinating seeds, and finally, transferring the prepared seed trays to the greenhouse. And now, we are thrilled to be able to tell you that the seedlings have officially arrived! We are seeing the first signs of life of muskmelon, zucchini, and watermelon plants (pictured left to right).

Time spent in the greenhouse is very important for these young plants. They are just starting off, and conditions need to be just right to ensure optimal growth is achieved – especially temperature. Walking into the greenhouse is like stepping onto a remote tropical island just after a storm has passed. The air is warm and humid, and it smells of wet soil. The warmth is thanks to Mother Nature & her gorgeous sunshine, the moisture to the daily watering, and the smell of dirt thanks to – well, dirt! The temperature within the greenhouse is carefully maintained via two large fans. If the thermometer climbs above the upper limit we have set, the fans kick on and start to cycle in cooler outside air to help achieve the perfect balance.

These seedlings have been hanging out in the greenhouse for approximately 10 days now. We hope to begin to transplant them to the outdoor fields between May 10th and 15th, which will bring us to a total of 6 weeks in the greenhouse. For now, all those little guys need to do is keeping vacationing in Innerkip’s top tropical destination; staying thoroughly hydrated, of course! We water the seedlings once a day using an overhead boom, pictured below.

A photo of the watering system at the Thames River Melons family farm.

Well, that’s it for this week’s on-farm update! Stay tuned for more info on how your favourite farm fruits are growing.

Blog post written & photographed by Alex Chesney, RD

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