Starting Seeds Yourself

To get a jump start on the garden season, many people choose to start their seeds indoor so that they will have thriving seedlings to transplant to their garden come spring. It is a fun hobby that many people do each year in anticipation for spring. When cabin fever has come, bring out the seeds, seed trays, and planting medium to cure the fever! There are a few necessities and procedures when it comes to seed starting you should follow.

The first thing you will need to think about is where you would like to place the seed trays. You will want a sunny spot somewhere in your house that is fairly undisturbed. A sunny window, indoor porch or any southern exposure place in your home will do. If you do not have a place where sun can shine on the trays, you could invest in a growing light or some simple cool-white fluorescent light bulbs.

You will also need a container to grow your seedlings in. In any garden store you can find an entire section devoted to seed starting. They make all sorts of seed trays that come with peat pellets and are ready for planting. You could also use small pots or any planting container. You will only need the container until it is warm enough to plant your seedlings outside. Peat pots work well since they are biodegradable and you can plant them directly into the soil with the seedlings. Peat pots will require constant moisture checking since the pots will draw moisture out of the soil.

The most important part of seed starting is the seeds! You will want to purchase your seeds of choice from a reputable nursery or magazine. Using fresh seeds will result in the best germination rate, but you may use last year's seeds as well. You will just want to check on them and be sure they have germinated. When planting the seeds you will want to mark them carefully so you know how to place them into your garden in the spring. You may want to keep vegetable seedling separate from flowering seeds, or arrange them by planting times. Any way that you can organize your seeds will help you in the spring for easy transplanting.