UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The gardening season is just around the corner. The forsythia is beginning to bud and spring bulb stems and foliage are beginning to emerge from the ground. It's time to start deciding what to plant in the garden this year.

Planting seeds offers gardeners a low-cost opportunity to stick with favorite plants and try out new ones. When considering seeds, advises a horticulture expert in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, you should ponder information found on the package.

Early-spring planning with seed packages, according to Elsa Sánchez, assistant professor of horticultural systems management, makes a garden better in summer.

--Picture: A picture of the plant in flower or harvested fruit or vegetable typically is found on the front of the seed package. The picture offers useful information like flower type and color and what to expect when harvesting a fruit or vegetable. Remember that the picture is usually of the flower, fruit or vegetable at its best, so use it only as a guide.

--Plant Description: Often it is difficult to determine the form of a plant based on the picture. Seed packages usually provide a written description of the plant including the plant cultivar, plant height, days to harvest or bloom, and habits, such as "climbing, upright," etc.

--Uses and Weight: Seed packages often suggest uses for the plant. Some examples are for containers, beds, winter houseplants, trellises, etc. The number of seeds or weight of the seed also is found on the package.

--Date: The package will have the year for which the seeds were packaged. For example, "Packed For Season 2002." This information is important because as seeds age they loose viability. If seeds have a germination rate of 80 percent in 2002, the rate can be expected to be lower in 2003; for example, 50 percent.

--Planting Directions: The seed package should have directions on when to plant the seeds, depending on where it will be planted in the United States. The directions should include planting depth, plant spacing and plant exposure requirements (full or partial sun or shade). This section also will advise whether the seeds should be planted indoors prior to planting outdoors. The planting directions often also will contain basic directions for the care of the plant.

Seed packages for some plants contain additional information.

--Perennials: The hardiness zone for the plant will be found on the back of the package. The cold hardiness zone is based on the lowest temperature the plant will grow in. Since cold hardiness zones in Pennsylvania range from 3 to 7, it is important to know what zone the plant will be grown in.

This information sometimes is included on the seed package; it also can be found in gardening books. Seed packages for perennial seed also will include when the plant will bloom.

--Seed Mixes: Typical packaged seed mixes include: wildflowers, gourds and salad mixes. Additional information offered on these seed packages is the percentage of each seed type, the area the seeds will cover, the life cycle of the plants (such as annual, biennial or perennial), and the percentage of inert matter or vermiculite. Inert matter and vermiculite are included to help broadcast the seed uniformly.

"It is a good idea to keep the seed package after planting the seeds as a reference for future care, harvesting and planting," says Sánchez. "The diversity of seeds is exciting because it offers gardeners virtually limitless planting combinations of flowers, fruits and vegetables to grow and enjoy."

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EDITORS: Contact Elsa Sánchez at 814-863-2433 or ess11@psu.edu.

Contact:

Jeff Mulhollem jjm29@psu.edu 814-863-2719 814-865-1068 fax