Sarah Raven in her article "The Veg Patch, Part III: how to sow seeds" which appeared in The Daily Telgraph, Telegraph Gardening, Saturday, February 24, 2007 shows how by a series of experimentation she has achieved nearly a 100% germination success rate by using lengths of guttering to sow her seeds in.  She advocates sowing "at least half the vegetable crop into gutter lengths filled with a non-peat-based potting compost."

The new Rowplanter, which made its debut in early September, offers exactly the same benefits which Sarah outlines in her article, and can be described as a revolution to the unwieldy method of tradional gutter planting.  There is no need to go to the nearest builders yard and buy long lengths of gutter, traipse them home and laboriously hack them into usable lengths and then have to manipulate them into spaces too small for them!

So why use guttering, when the manageable Rowplanter lengths can be placed in a small protected space, they have their own tray to hold them so they will not fall over and there is a propagating lid to assist the germination period?

The rows (gutter) do not need a large amount of soil preparation and sowing into the rows takes no longer than if you were sowing dierctly into the ground, but there is no need to bend and stoop, it can be done at a table or on your greenhouse bench.  Sowing can be done with care and spacing can be evened out and when germination takes place thinning out can be done in the rows without any kneeling or bending.  This means this method conserves seed as well.

Sarah Raven says this method, (traditionally suited to peas), is also ideal for serial sowing of salad crops, leafy greens (mizuna, rocket, chard, spinach, chervil) and herbs  (coriander, parsley and basil).  Serial sowing is necessary as all these crop well for a couple of months before needing to be replaced and the Rowplanter is ideal to leave in the "wings" ready to use as replacement when necessary.

Radishes can be left in the rows and eaten straight from the rows wihout being planted out and the rows are also ideal for parsnips provided they are transplanted before they are 2,5cm high.  Even carrots can be grown in the Rowplanter lengths and if left till the seedlings reach 4cm in height you will be sure of a  "baby carrot crop right through to Christmas."

Sarah Raven says that "when planting from the gutter you will need two people, one at either end", but with the Rowplanter  a single person can easily handle the 32cm long row and slide the contents into the ready prepared trench in the garden.  Remember to make the trench 6,5cms deep x 32cms long x 8cms wide and there will be no root disturbance to your seedlings which will continue to flourish in their new environment.