Seed to seedling to plant

Starting your own seedlings, is easy and economical. Why spend money on expensive nursery bought plants, when you can grow your own.

Besides when you start from seed, you can experiment with different heirloom varieties and even grow ethnic vegetables that are not easily available in your local nurseries!

To start your seedlings, the best is to follow the instructions at the back of your seed packet.

Many seeds can be started indoors 4-6 weeks before your last frost date. (Find out your gardening zone, each one has a different frost date). This gives you a head start and a longer gardening season to grow and enjoy your produce.

You will need…

Seed starter mix

A misting spray bottle

Starting trays

Some plastic labels

A permanent marker

A heating mat (optional)

Grow lights (optional)

And ofcourse seeds of vegetables you want to grow.

Process:

Lightly fill your starting trays wirh seed starter mix.

Moisten with water.

Sow seeds according to package directions.

For bigger seeds, make small holes,.I like to use a chopstick for the purpose.

Cover with a thin layer of soil.

Do not forget to label your seeds!

Next, spray with a gentle mist of water and place on the heat mat (if using).

Seeds germination can take anytime between 2-3 weeks.

Once they germinate, it’s important for them to get sunlight or they tend to get too leggy.

Example of a leggy plant, that doesn’t get enough sunlight…

So place your trays in a sunny corner inside your house. If you don’t get much sun inside, you can use grow lights too.

Water regularly, using your spray mister, atleast once a day. On sunny days, you might even need to mist them twice.

Do not overwater as that can result in causing mould! Feel the soil with your fingers, and water when starting to get dry.

With a little patience, regular watering and good sunlight….your seedlings will emerge with their first set of leaves.

Continue to care for them consistantly…till their next set of leaves emerge. These new leaves are also called ‘true leaves’.

Your seedlings will slowly gain strength and height, and become double the size of their starting pods.

Now, its time to transplant them to bigger pots.

As you remove the plants from the starter trays, try to disturb the roots as little as possible….and gently place them into the new pots.

This is the reason I like to use peat pots in seed starting trays. You can transplant your seedlings without removing them from the peat pots, as they slowly dissolve into soil.