Sowing Seeds

As many as you want to eat and a few more just in case!!

it really depends on what crop it is. For an average family, 2 or 3 courgette plants are usually enough for example (i would still sow about 6 seeds though). I usually sow around 80 runner beans...2 varieties, 40 seeds of each, 2 seeds per pot and then i plant 20 pots per large tub.

I usually sow about 10 lettuce seeds every week and end up with about 4 or 5 plants planted a week, which gives me a succession. Chantennay Carrots and spring onions are usually sown in the ground and left unthinned. I sow a small row every week just to give me a succession through the season.

That's the sort of idea. As seeds are cheap, i tend to over sow everything. Most stuff is sown in pots in the greenhouse and then planted out and if there's anything spare, i put it on a table on the allotment saying "help yourself" as i hate throwing things away.

Probably best to record what and how much you've sown etc so if you did do too much...or too little, you can sort it out next year

Good luck

Andy

As has already been said, it depends a great deal on what you are sowing and what you like to eat. It also depends where and when you are sowing, for example you would sow far more seeds outside in a row than you would in a seed tray in a propagator, to allow for losses which are much more likely outside. You would also sow fewer if you were experimenting with planting things at an odd time, as you don't want to waste too much if the whole sowing fails.

Some seeds such as brassicas, onions etc are cheap, and some such as parsnips and parsley really don't keep well, so you would sow more of these than the more expensive F1 varieties you might buy of things like courgettes, tomatoes and peppers. Always check how many seeds you are getting for your money as some brands sell the same variety at the same price but with far fewer seeds than others.

With big seeds like courgettes or peppers where there are few in a packet the standard advice is to sow 2 per pot and remove the smaller of the 2. I tend to find that both will often grow very well if transplanted into separate pots when they have 2 true leaves, and this avoids throwing away expensive seedlings. Tomatoes are also expensive to buy, with only about 10-12 seeds per packet. You can grow just a few plants and then (for cordon varieties) when you remove the side shoots at about a couple of inches long, just stick them into a pot of compost or a glass of water, cover with a plastic bag and put in a warm but not too bright place until roots appear through the bottom of the pot. I grow just a few seeds and end up with about 20 plants this way.