• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to footer navigation
  • Skip to header navigation
  • Skip to privacy navigation
  • Skip to recipes navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Blog
  • Contact

Brooklyn Farm Girl

Cooking And Gardening in NYC

PopularStewed Tomatoes
let's be friends
join my free recipe club!
  • New? Start Here
  • recipes
    • Course
      • Breakfast
      • Desserts
      • Dinner
      • Drinks
      • Side Dishes
      • Snacks
    • Type
      • 30 Minute Meals
      • Breads
      • Brownies & Bars
      • Cakes
      • Casseroles
      • Cheesy
      • Cookies
      • Dips
      • Donuts
      • Holidays
      • Kid Friendly
      • Mac and Cheese
      • Muffins
      • Pasta
      • Pizza
      • Potluck
      • Salads
      • Smoothies
      • Sneaky Vegetables
      • Soups
      • Vegan
      • Vegetarian
    • Meat
      • Beef
      • Chicken
      • Pork
      • Seafood
      • Turkey
    • Method
      • Baked
      • Canning
      • Drying & Storing
      • Freezing
      • Instant Pot
      • Roasted
      • Slow Cooker
      • Stovetop
    • Season
      • Spring
      • Summer
      • Fall
      • Winter
  • Vegetable Index
  • Urban Gardening
    • Let’s Harvest
    • Tutorials
    • Seed Calendar
    • Compost in Brooklyn
  • About Me
    • About Pamela
    • Our Garden
    • Editorial Guidelines
  • Life & motherhood
    • Journal
    • Motherhood
    • Our Upstate Adventure
    • Cats, Cats, Cats
    • Crafts
  • Videos
  • PopularStewed Tomatoes
Home » Life » Upstate Adventure

Spring seeds are planted! Come cheer them on!

By: Pamela Reed
Posted:3/28/16
Updated:2/6/25

The Spring 2016 seeds are planted!    Broccoli, Cauliflower, Brussels Sprouts, Collards, Bok Choy, Cabbage, Kale and Onions seeds are all popping through the soil! Come and cheer them on!

We’ve been busy on the weekends getting the Upstate garden ready.  This weekend we put lots of hard work in, and next weekend will be even more harder.  The good thing is a day of Upstate work equals a week’s worth of workouts (research done by me).   I’m going to have such strong muscles one day.

While we’re busy doing manual labor, there’s labor going on here, but the plant kind.  The seeds were planted, and they burst through the soil at record speeds.  We built a new grow light cart his year (DIY coming soon!) and it’s been majorly effective.  In the past we’ve had to wait about a week for our broccoli and bok choy seeds to come up, but this year within 2 days they already broke through the soil and were waving hello.   As usual, we planted double seeds in each pot, and as usual every seed came up.  It’s always the difficult choice of killing a seedling, or doubling your garden.  We have garden parent guilt syndrome (aka GPGS) so we usually can’t kill the extra seedlings.  Matthew is like “You cut them” and I’m like “No way! You do it!” and then noone does it.  Just today we were planning on getting rid (that sounds awful) of the double plants, but we decided to “hold off”.  That means we’ll never do it.

Spring Seed Planting_8

We always grow our vegetables from seeds.  Not only is it worth it to watch them grow from seed to vegetable bearing plant, but it’s much more economical.  A pack of seeds averages on $2-$5 and that can sometimes get you up to a few hundred plants! A baby plant at a nursery usually costs a few bucks (if not more with heirloom) and you don’t even know if it’s going to survive, so you can see how much money you save.     Since we started growing the rooftop garden we’ve learned that it’s important to have good quality seeds, ones with high germination rate and successful growing.   Johnny’s Seeds are our go to seed company.  We’ve been buying off them for years and have never been disappointed.  We have a list we usually stick with every year from growing experience, but occasionally we try something new (lots of new pumpkin varieties this Fall!).

Spring Seed Planting_6

Our Spring plants are:
Broccoli (Arcadia)
Cauliflower (Skywalker) <– Amazing name!  This is a new variety we’re trying.
Onions (Candy)
Brussels Sprouts (Diablo)
Cabbage (Tendersweet)
Kale (Starbor)
Collards (Flash)
Bok Choy (Mei Quing Choi)  New Variety we’re trying.

Let’s just take a minute and talk about how awesome it is that you can grow vegetables from a itty bitty seed.   One little seed can give you tens (or hundreds) of pounds of vegetables.  Seriously, think about how awesome it is.
Brussels Sprouts, Kale, Collards, Broccoli, Cabbage, Bok Choy and Cauliflower plants (top to bottom).
Spring Seed Planting_3

Really.  Look at how tiny a seed is.  Let me grab a green crayon to really show you.
Spring Seed Planting_4

Spring Seed Planting_5

And it grows into this..  Bok Choy larger than my head! Or hundreds of pounds of tomatoes!    Sigh, I love you plants.  All of you.  You amaze me.
First Bok Choy Harvest 2014_2

Onions were planted.. 2 days later, the first one shows up to party!
Spring Seed Planting

Then more show up…
Spring Seed Planting_1

Then all of them show up! And some of they invited friends.
Spring Seed Planting_11

The bok choy was up in record speeds.  This year we’re growing mini bok choy because I’m having a baby bok choy moment.  I eat about 10 plants a week.
Spring Seed Planting_13

Spring Seed Planting_9

Here’s the baby kale. It looks like… kale!
Spring Seed Planting_15

And tons and tons of broccoli.
Spring Seed Planting_14

Follow along with my seed calendar if you’re in the Northeast and need some help figuring out what dates to plant your seeds.  Soon enough we’ll be planting Summer seeds.  You always need to think ahead when you’re starting from seeds.
Spring Seed Planting_7

Check back in a few weeks to how the seedlings are doing!  What are you growing? Make sure to tell me in the comments. I love talking vegetables.
Spring Seed Planting_12

And thanks to our seed protector, Mister Goblin, who sleeps next to them.  I believe why they’ve been growing so good this year is because Goblin is sprinkling magical powder on them.
Spring Seed Planting_2

Happy Gardening!

Similar Recipes

  • Strawberries Showing Signs of Spring
  • Strawberries Showing Signs of Spring
  • Strawberries Showing Signs of Spring
  • Strawberries Showing Signs of Spring

Reader Interactions

join the free recipe club

Receive My Favorite Recipes Straight To Your Inbox!

Thank you for subscribing!

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

I love hearing from you! Submit your question or recipe review here. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Made this? Rate this recipe:





  1. Susan says

    April 17, 2016 at 9:23 am

    I’m so excited for this time of year! Although I only have room to start parsley and basil and a few tomatoes indoors, I did get my peas and radishes in the ground this past week and I planted garlic last fall that is looking great. I wish I had room to grow more veggies outdoors but when you’re surrounded by huge sugar maple trees on all sides my sunny growing spaces are limited. Go, veggies, go!

    Reply
  2. Karen (Back Road Journal) says

    April 13, 2016 at 5:17 pm

    Look at all of those beautiful babies. I could never “get rid” of any too. If they germinated they got the chance to give it their best. 🙂

    Reply
  3. Sophie says

    April 6, 2016 at 4:04 am

    Well done you! All the seeds are growing great! Cool! We have been sowing indoors many veggies too & also flowers!

    Reply
  4. Lux G. says

    March 31, 2016 at 3:02 am

    I’m cheering them on. Woohoo! Exciting to see them grow.

    Reply
  5. Norma Chang says

    March 30, 2016 at 6:27 pm

    My seeds have germinated and I already transplanted some of the lettuce and other seedlings into window boxes and containers. Bok choy and others need to be transplanted into large container but must wait as night time temp is still below 50’s and will be dropping into the 20’s next week and rain/snow is in the forecast for Tuesday 4/5. I am not at all pleased, but that’s the way it is with our weather this time of year.

    Reply
  6. John/Kitchen Riffs says

    March 30, 2016 at 12:26 pm

    We often buy sets, but are doing seeds this year (although we’ll buy tomatoes and cukes — don’t need that many). They are more fun. I should really build a nice seed start setup like you have — eager to see your post on that!

    Reply
  7. Brenda at Wonderland Gardens says

    March 30, 2016 at 12:14 pm

    I’ve been meaning to ask you where you get your seeds from – thanks. We want to try to grow broccoli for the first time this year!

    Reply
  8. Debbie from MountainMama says

    March 30, 2016 at 12:05 pm

    I’ve started batch # 1 of seeds and they are all up except the celery – nothing yet. Batch #1 consisted of leeks, celery, a few types of peppers, winter squash, many types of lettuce heads, and cosmos (of course!) Batch #2 is going in this weekend! You can read about my seeds on my blog at http://www.mountainmamaonline.net/2016/03/spring-project-update.html

    Reply
  9. Jennifer @ WrittenByJennifer says

    March 30, 2016 at 11:15 am

    This is my first year trying my hand at vegetable gardening. I’m in awe like you over the fact that food is going to grow from these tiny little seeds. It’s basically magic! I’m having a difficult time cutting back my seedlings too.

    Reply
  10. Anna @ shenANNAgans says

    March 29, 2016 at 11:32 pm

    Wish I lived closer to ‘pop by’ for a bok choy bigger than my head. Wowza lady, that is some impressive looking vegetable. Do you talk lovingly to your garden? I heard of gardeners that did that and their gardens absolutely thrived.

    Reply
  11. Debra Eliotseats says

    March 29, 2016 at 10:28 am

    This reminds me I haven’t planted Bok Choy!

    Reply
  12. Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy says

    March 29, 2016 at 9:48 am

    We cleared our garden out this weekend so we can start planting next weekend. I am SO excited. Bring on the salad!

    Reply
  13. DAD says

    March 28, 2016 at 11:46 pm

    I THINK YOU ARE GOING TO NEED TO OPEN A VEGGIE STAND ON SPENCER ST.

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

welcome!

Hi! I'm Pamela, an artist Mom who shares family recipes. My farm is a 1,000 sq ft apartment in NYC. Let's make dinner together.

Read More

join the free
recipe club!

Receive My Favorite Recipes Straight to Your Inbox!

Thank you for subscribing!

TOP POSTS

Half Sour Pickles

The Best Stewed Tomatoes Ever

Unstuffed Bell Pepper Casserole with Ground Beef

Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce

Recipe Index
Vegetable Index
Follow On Facebook
Follow On Instagram
Free Recipe Club

fresh this week view all

How to Store and Freeze Fresh Blueberries

Irish Potato Candy (Pennsylvania Dutch)

Classic Stuffed Peppers

Peanut Butter Protein Cookies

As Featured On
free recipe club!
Get weekly recipes, videos, and gardening tips to your inbox!
join the club!
EST. 2013
let's be friends
  • Recipe Index
  • Veggie Index
  • Urban Gardening
  • Web Stories
Back To Top
© 2025 - All Rights Reserved
  • Privacy Policy & Terms
Site Credits Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled

join the recipe club!

Receive My Favorite Recipes Straight to Your Inbox!

Thank you for subscribing!