Broadcasting seed saves a lot of time and effort

Life in the garden allows us to ponder the imponderable, such as, “If television and radio are ‘broadcast’ what is ‘narrow cast?’” Up until 1920 all forms of electronic communication such as telegrams or telephones were one to one with one sender and one receiver. So when KDKA radio station in Pittsburgh sent out signals to anyone and everyone who had a radio, the station called it “broadcasting” to mimic the broadcasting or scattering of seeds by farmers and gardeners.

Before the invention of the seed drill, most grains and large crops were planted by broadcasting or simply tossing seeds onto prepared ground. Unfortunately when you toss seeds into the air, they land randomly, often too close to one another, so the crop is crowded or the seed falls upon stones or is blown away or eaten by birds. By drilling into the earth and placing seeds evenly spaced in rows, seed drills can increase yields by as much as 900 percent.

Seeds that do best when broadcast include those that are not buried but left on the surface of the soil and seeds that are usually planted very shallow, under 1/2 inch deep, such as lettuce, Swiss chard, any leafy greens, and many herbs.

Besides being the traditional method of sowing grains and grasses, broadcasting lends itself to flowers such as annual poppy, whose tiny seeds need no covering. Broadcast poppy seeds throughout the garden any time in spring. Try broadcasting Corn poppy (Papaver rhoeas), Plains coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria), Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritime), and Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus). Scatter the seeds in flowerbeds where the plants will rapidly grow and bloom in time for early summer.  Wildflower seed mixes often call for broadcasting the seeds rather than planting them in rows. In the vegetable garden try broadcasting herbs such as basil. I often toss basil seeds among the tomato plants for a kind of grow your own Italian appetizer.

You can also broadcast certain vegetables and certain flowers in wide beds of their own rather than tediously planting them in rows. Any crop that you eat young and tender such as lettuce, beets, carrots, Swiss chard and mixed greens can easily be broadcast in wide beds. If you keep the beds 4 feet wide or less you should be able to reach the center of the bed for harvesting from either side.

To broadcast seeds dig the bed and rake it smooth. Mix fine seeds with an equal amount of sand for easier sowing. With your back to the wind, toss the seeds into the air so they drift to the ground evenly. For large areas walk in one direction first and then following in a perpendicular direction for complete coverage. After broadcasting the seeds you can gently tamp them into the ground. Carefully water the newly planted seeds with a fine mist setting on the hose. Keep the bed moist but not soggy.

So, rather than tediously plant each individual seed you can literally throw caution to the wind and toss seeds everywhere in the garden, in the flowerbeds or even along roads and driveways for a jumbled lively garden with plenty to pick.

It’s an easy method you may not want to share. After all, just because you take a few shortcuts there’s no need to broadcast that.