How to Start Seeds

A comprehensive guide to seed starting

www.gardeners.com/How-to-Start-Seeds

There are many ways to start seeds, but a seed-starting system, such as the Seed Starting Grow Kitensures good results.

When mail-order catalogs and local garden centers are bursting with an astonishing variety of plants of all kinds, why would anyone want to bother starting their own plants from seed? Here are a few good reasons:

• Starting plants from seed is less expensive
• There are many more varieties to choose from
• You can grow higher-quality plants
• You will get to enjoy the simple satisfaction of growing your own plants from seed to harvest.

The Compact Tabletop SunLite® Jump Start Kit includes everything you need to start some seeds:

• The Compact Tabletop SunLite Garden
• Two 24-cell planting trays
• One brick of Eco-co Coir (makes 10 qts.)
• 1.8 oz. Easy Grow fertilizer
• 50 wooden plant markers
• Power Strip: Four 24-hour timer-controlled outlets and four switch controlled outlets, all with sliding safety covers

To be successful, you'll need to provide the right conditions for good germination and healthy growth. Here are the basics:

If you are a beginner, start with "easy seeds" that are quick to germinate and don't require a lot of extra fussing. It's easy to get carried away and buy too many different packets of seeds. If you are starting seeds for the first time, you may want to limit yourself to no more than ten different types of plants.

Choosing the Right Containers

You can start your seeds in almost any type of container as long as it is at least 2 to 3 inches deep and has some drainage holes. For best results, we recommend a seed-starting system, such as our Seed Starting Grow Kit. For tomatoes and peppers, you may want to start your plants in a seed-starting system and then "pot up" to larger containers, such as biodegradableCowpots. Some gardeners always plant their seeds in little rows in a larger flat. Once the tiny seedlings emerge, they get separated and replanted into individual containers.

The Best Growing Medium

To provide the optimum growing conditions, and to avoid disease and insect problems, seeds should be started in a soilless growing mix, not in garden soil. A good blend is fine-textured, moist and spongy.

You can purchase a ready-mixed blend, or mix your own, using 1/3 vermiculite, 1/3 perlite, 1/3 milled sphagnum moss. Remember that soilless mixes contain few, if any, nutrients. You will need to start feeding your seedlings with liquid fertilizer a few weeks after they germinate, and continue until you transplant them into the garden. Plant Health Care is formulated especially for seedlings.

After your seedlings are six to eight weeks old, you can transplant them into larger pots with a coarser growing medium, such as our Transplant Mix. If you wish, you can add up to 20 percent garden soil or sifted compost. A standard blend may contain 1/3 compost, 1/3 perlite or vermiculite, and 1/3 sphagnum moss. This will help ensure that your plants have access to some soil nutrients, and it will also help prepare them for life in the garden.

Timing Your Planting

Seeds sprout and plants grow at different rates, so timing is very important. Some seeds, such as celery and leeks, should be started 12 weeks before they are transplanted into the garden. Others, including cucumbers and sunflowers, need only three or four weeks (and will suffer if started too early). Check the seed packet to find the recommended seed-starting times. If you plan to start more than a packet or two of seeds, it helps to create a seed-starting schedule, counting back from the date you plan to set out the transplants.

For more on how to create a customized seed-starting schedule, see When to Start Your Seeds.

If you will be growing your seedlings in a greenhouse or a very warm room, you should subtract at least a week from the recommended planting date. Heat promotes faster growth, and you may find yourself with giant plants that are ready to be put out into the garden before warm weather arrives.

Seedlings that are started very early might need to be transplanted into larger containers after three or four weeks. This is especially true if you broadcast your seeds in flats rather than planting them in individual growing cells. The sooner your plants are put into individual cells with plenty of root space, the happier they will be.