The big squeeze

When it comes to sowing seeds and pricking out seedlings, space is always at a premium, says Bob

- Bob Flowerdew

I WAS asked the other day why it’s always recommended to sow, prick out and then pot on, and why we don’t just sow in the pots they’re going to grow in straight away. Which, of course, you can do for some. As always, it’s horses for courses. The main reason is obvious: you can squeeze more in.

Space in a warm propagator, cold frame or even on the greenhouse bench is always limited. By starting off batches of seedlings in small pots and then pricking these out into trays or cells, you fit more in. Furthermore, as each batch of seedlings grow, you only pot on the best (more if you can’t be ruthless enough), thus ensuring that most become fine specimens. But there is a cost to this: each time you move on a seedling or plant, it receives a check to growth – and the more so the older it has become. This is mitigated by the roots now having more compost to grow into, but nonetheless it does set plants back temporarily.