Home

Starting Seeds Indoors

PrintPrintEmailEmail
Leave a comment
Your rating: None Average: 4.1 of 5 (32 votes)

Here are tips from The Old Farmer's Almanac on how to start your seeds indoors.

  • Team up with a neighbor for starting seeds, since a packet often yields much more than you will need.
  • Don't start your seeds too early, especially tomatoes! Most annual flowers and vegetables should be sown indoors about 6 weeks before the last frost in your area.
  • See our annual Best Planting Dates for Seeds chart which is based on your frost dates and by the Moon.
  • You may have to soak, scratch, or chill seeds before planting, as directed on packet.
  • Use clean containers. Most seed catalogs offer seedling flats, peat pots, and other growing containers, but egg carton compartments make good containers, too. Be sure to poke holes in the sides near the bottom of the containers you use.
  • Label your containers now! There's nothing more frustrating than forgetting what you planted.
  • Fill clean containers with seedling mix. Use soilless peat moss and mix in equal parts vermiculite and perlite to hold enough water and allow oxygen to flow. Don't use potting soil.
  • Pour soilless mix into a large bucket and moisten with warm water. Fill your containers to just below the rim.
  • Plant your seeds according to your seed packet. Most seeds can simply be gently pressed into the mixture; you can use the eraser end of a pencil to push in seeds.

Seed Tip: When planting seeds, plant the largest seeds in the package to get the best germination rate.

  • Cover containers with plastic. Prick holes with a toothpick for ventilation. Water as directed.
  • Water newly started seedlings carefully. A pitcher may let the water out too forcefully. A mist sprayer is gentle but can take a long time. Try using a meat-basting syringe, which will dispense the water effectively without causing too much soil disruption.
  • Find a place in the kitchen where there is natural bottom heat—on top of the refrigerator or near the oven. (Move the tray if the oven is on, as it may become too hot.)
  • Seeds sprout best at temperatures of 65 to 75°F (18 to 24°C).
  • When seedlings appear, remove the plastic and move containers into bright light.
  • When the seedlings get their second pair of leaves, prepare individual pots filled with a potting mix with plenty of compost. Move the seedlings carefully to the new pots and water well. Keep pots out of direct sun for a few days.

Now, go to our article on how to transplant your seedlings!

Related Articles

More Articles:

Comments

How do you get rid of the

By everettg08 on May 1

How do you get rid of the mold/mildew on the plants?? I just noticed my flats are covered in it! We are going to be moving them outdoors soon. Should they even be moved or will it infect everything else?

You should physically scrape

By Almanac Staff on May 7

You should physically scrape off the mold/mildew and then try sprinkling your flats with ground cinnamon.

Why do you recommend not

By irishiz50

Why do you recommend not using potting soil? I live in the Midwest and have used potting soil for the past couple of years and didn't seem to have a problem using it. Why would using soilless peat moss, mixed with equal parts vermiculite and perlite be better, besides allowing oxygen to flow?Thanks!

Potting soil is often heavy

By Almanac Staff

Potting soil is often heavy and doesn't drain well. Delicate new roots of young seedlings have a harder time developing in potting soil. Soilless medium is much lighter and easier to handle when you move pots around. Potting soil that hasn't been sterilized may also spread diseases.

I've found that for most

By Eternius Windblade

I've found that for most small ant and bug problems, Bergamot essential oil works really well. If you burn three drops in a tea light per large area, or put a couple drops along the window sills or door entryways (every few months), they hate that stuff. Not sure if it helps in the actual seedlings, but if someone can answer that it'd help me too. Thanks!

What make your plants so

By Shirlley

What make your plants so leggy when planted indoors from seeds

Hi Shirlley, The most likely

By Almanac Staff

Hi Shirlley, The most likely cause is not enough sunlight. The seedlings stretch for the sunlight. To solve this problem, repotting the seedlings in bigger pots and maybe adding a grow light will help. Some seeds are better planted directly in the garden when the soil has warmed up.

Good basic article on

By Me from Maine

Good basic article on starting seeds indoors. Just one VERY IMPORTANT tip is missing. Even when using clean pot, etc., Damp-off is often a problem. (mold/mildew that kills young seedlings) The solution? Cinnamon! I have a jar of Cinnamon. I replaced the sprinkle top with a piece of nylon stretched tight... like the foot of pantyhose, knee-hi, etc., and hold on with an elastic.
When I'm through planting a seed flat, pots, six-packs, I lightly dust each one with the cinnamon. Organic, natural, proven to work every time! Will no slow, prevent, harm newly sprouted seeds of any kind!

You could always move north,

By Home_grown

You could always move north, we don't have fireants here in BC. Just sugar ants and borax mixed with icing sugar is a good bet. our bigest problem here is the deer

Where can you find info on

By sharlynn53

Where can you find info on when to dig to plant post?

If you're looking for best

By Almanac Staff

If you're looking for best days based on the Moon, we have the dates on when to plant posts here: http://www.almanac.com/bestdays/timetable

i was told by an old farmer

By jakcie

i was told by an old farmer that the dark side of the moon will keep posts in. The light side will pull them out. Has always worked for me.

Fire ants are the bane of a

By SuzieHomemaker

Fire ants are the bane of a Texan gardener! I am going to try dehydrated molasses...anyone else done that?

The most effective solution

By Almanac Staff

The most effective solution is fire ant baits with Spinosad. Don't wait. Sprinkle it around each mound in the later afternoon or when fire ants are foraging. See this page for brand names:
http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/plants/vegetables/gardening/hgic1263.html

I agree with briddog501. But

By nhfireman1

I agree with briddog501. But add this...mix some confectioners sugar and water with the borax. Ants can't pass this up. Be aware of other animals that may eat this (pets etc). So use in protected area or at a height where it won't be attainable by other animals.

I have several plants in

By Monika Reed

I have several plants in large containers. It's a constant struggle to keep the ants from moving into the containers from the bottom. Ants are like weeds: you never get rid of them!!!!!

Try making a strong garlic

By Fathom

Try making a strong garlic tea and put it in a pray bottle, good for all sorts of bugs.

House Hold Bleach will red

By PattyC

House Hold Bleach will red ants

Try cinnamon power around the

By Tom Ato

Try cinnamon power around the base & beneath the containers. The ants will move somewhere else.

Mint, mint, and more mint.

By geezergardener

Mint, mint, and more mint. Ants don't like just about every type of mint. Use dry or fresh mint on top of the soil or for better results mix it in with the soil. Also planting mint in the pot will make the ants go away.

I found the perfect solution

By DL Will

I found the perfect solution to a terrific ant problem. I moved to a different state.

I also have an ant problem

By peacefulpotter

I also have an ant problem that i went to my local nursery about. They sold me some fire ant killer aka orthene. You spray the dirt and area around plants. Works like a charm. Smells like a dead animal's bowels.

I've been told by wise older

By wjudd91

I've been told by wise older gardeners that if you put cornmeal at the ant infested area, it will kill the ants because they will eat it and cannot digest it. Don't understand it, but it DOES work!!

I too have the problem of

By dedeec44

I too have the problem of ants getting into my containers! It is not fun to find a big hill of them in your plant you are trying to re-pot! I am allergic to their bites...

I was concerned if the Orthene will harm any plants you have in the planter at the time you spray it? Anyone know? Thanks for all the useful and informative info here!

I live in Maryland and we

By Beckster5126

I live in Maryland and we have "sugar ant" problems every year. I use a mixture of borax and regular corn meal. The ants can digest the cornmeal or the borax so it eliminates them. Safe and no pesticides.

Here's a recipe that makes

By Nativetejana

Here's a recipe that makes the ants move away:4 oz orange oil (can be purchased at most organic nurseries) 4 oz of blackstrap molasses or gardening molasses,1 gal of water.

try putting borax around your

By briddog501

try putting borax around your pot on the ground

i don't know what they use

By max-n-tx

i don't know what they use but once every 2 years... the pest control company wants to do it every year....i pay a pest control company to spread they're ant poison in the yard. I live in ant central. coastal Texas i've had very little trouble with ants since i started spending the money on the pest control people.

1 side note. since i don't have ants anymore the armadillos and opossums love my yard for digging up grub worms. big ugly cuts right down the center of the yard.

kind of exchange 1 problem for another...

Treat to kill the grub worms,

By Ricky Ervin

Treat to kill the grub worms, no food the problem leaves. If you have a garden this will kill the good worms as well you may not want to treat the garden and watch for run off potential to reach the garden.

Post new comment

Before posting a question, please review the page to see if the question has been asked already. Due to the volume of questions, Almanac editors can respond only occasionally, as time allows. We also welcome tips from our wonderful Almanac community!

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
By submitting this form, you accept the Mollom privacy policy.