How To Start Seeds

Broccoli

It's that time of year again.  The dreaming and waiting have given way to planting.  Indoor planting, that is.....April 2nd, and it was 17F this morning when we woke up.  Can't let that slow me down, though....so my window sill is full of tiny seedlings!

Starting seeds intimidates a lot of folks, but it's actually easier than it seems.  With attention to a few key details, anyone can do it.  Here are my keys to success:

Cauliflower

1.  Don't start too early.  It's easy to get excited about spring and plant way too early.  The packet of seeds will tell you exactly when to plant them.  If it says to start your seeds indoors 6-8 weeks prior to your last frost date, then find out your last frost date, and count back 6-8 weeks.  For example, in Zone 5 where I live, our last frost date is June 15.  If I count backward 8 weeks from June 15, I find I should start those particular seeds around mid-April.  Oops...I just broke my own first rule.  My tomatoes and basil actually got planted 2 weeks early.  See how easy it is too break this rule?









2.  You need supplemental light.  Go buy a shop light.  It doesn't have to be super-fancy, it doesn't need expensive grow-light light bulbs.  Just a plain old shop light will do.  Here's mine.  I got it on sale a couple of years ago for $15.  I like it's shiny hood---I imagine it helps reflect more light on my seedlings.  I don't know if that's true, but I like to imagine that.  Anyway, as you can see,  I hang it in my sunny bay window, and I adjust it's height as my plants grow taller.  Without supplemental light like this, your seedlings grow leggy and weak.  I have mine on a timer, and the timer is set to provide light for 12 hours a day.  That way I don't have to remember to turn it on and off.

3.  Use clean seed starting pots/trays.  It's ok to reuse the same trays year after year, but you have to clean and wash them in a bleach/water solution.

Parsley

4.  Don't use potting soil.  Go buy seed starting mix.  It is a soiless medium, and is light and easy for tiny young roots to penetrate.  It holds the right amount of moisture.  However, what it doesn't have is any nutrients.  Seeds don't need fertilizer to sprout.  But once the seedlings sprout, you'll need to feed them.  Plant your seeds in your prepared trays/pots.  (By prepared, I mean filled with moist dirt.)  Cover the newly planted seeds with a plastic lid, plastic baggie, whatever, to maintain a humid, moist environment.  Check the seedlings after a  few days, then check daily until you see sprouts.  Once the seeds have sprouted you can remove the covering.

5.  Once they sprout, water and feed your seedlings.  Regularly.  As in, every day.  I like to eat and drink every day, you like to eat and drink every day.  So do your seedlings.  Get a water-soluble fertilizer, mix up a very VERY weak batch (I think I use about 1/4 tsp. per half gallon of water), and use it every single day.

6.  This step is optional, but I like to use a small fan on my seedlings.  Just for an hour or two a day, run on low and set to blow indirectly across the trays.  I think it helps keep the humidity levels around the seedlings under control, which can prevent your tiny plants from falling prey to a disease called 'damping off.'  I also think it helps induce strong stems.  I've grown seedlings successfully without a fan many, many times, and you can too.  But I like my addition of a fan, and think it's worth suggesting.

Early Harvest Tomato

7.  Once they are growing well and have their first set of leaves, thin them out to one per cell (if you are using a cell pack), or per the directions on the back of the seed packet.  Thinning is the toughest part for any gardener, but you'll just have to put on your game face and rip those babies out.  If you don't do it, you'll end up growing a bunch of weak, poor plants.  So sacrifice the extras for the good of the few.  You won't regret it later.

OK, so that's really it.  Don't be intimidated.  They are only seeds.  If they don't grow, you can easily go get more and try again.  Good luck, and happy planting!

Basil

Canna 'South Pacific Scarlet'