Starting Vegetables from Seed Indoors

While there are a lot of veggies that you can simply put the seeds directly into the ground and they’ll grow well, some require a few weeks indoors to really perform their best. How does one start seeds indoors? Read on.

Last year, I invested in a Jiffy “greenhouse” kit… okay, I invested in three of them, but because of my laziness, I left them all outside during the entire season and then over winter and now it is spring and only one of them didn’t crack and become utterly useless. These kits came with peat moss pods covered in a white mesh to contain the plant while it grows. Simply add water to the tray, let the peat pods absorb, put your seed into the middle, put the clear plastic lid on and stick the tray under a fluorescent light. This year wasn’t so easy.

First off, it helps if you realize these particular pods come in various sizes, of which, I was not aware until I brought home the pods I had purchased and they were a tad too big for the tray. So what did I do? Well, I do not return stuff. I hate it. So, I overfilled the tray to allow the pods to absorb as much water as possible, which this part can take an hour or two, and dumped out the excess once they were filled. Then I pinched the bottoms of the pods to fit into the smaller sections in the tray so they stay put, and are able to suck in water to help the starts grow.

The next step I do is use popsicle sticks to label the pod rows, as this will help identify the various tomatoes I plan on growing, but also for the other items as well, even though their stems will be obviously different. With a chopstick, I poke a small hole in the top of the peat pod and put a seed in it, covering it slightly afterwards. Once they are all filled, and the popsicle stick labels are securely attached with duct tape, it is time to go into the garage.

Now, from raising chicks, we have a heat lamp, which I put a 100 watt equivalent compact fluorescent light bulb in to simulate sunlight. If you have an actual grower light, or want to invest in one, that is great. But really, any desk lamp will work. Once in place and centered, I put the clear plastic lid on it and wait for the seed starts to grow.

When the seedlings are about an inch long, prop open the lid a little, turning it at an angle so the four sides of the lid are resting on the top of the tray. This will allow for more airflow, while still retaining a lot of the humidity. If you don’t do this, your seedlings will mold, and then they are useless to everyone but the compost bin. When they start to touch the lid, it is time to remove it, and simply let the light shine directly onto your vegetable starts until it is time to plant them in their respective areas in the vegetable garden.

So, what should be started indoors? Tomatoes are the obvious choice, as they should be started eight to ten weeks before planting in the ground so they can be planted as soon as the ground is warm enough and all danger of frost is out of the picture. This year, I started five different tomatoes, utilizing the seeds I leftover from last year, and if they work, great! But if they don’t and I end up having to buy starts at the local farmer’s market, I’m okay with that too. I’m only out a dime per pod, and I planted three seeds of each variety. I also started basil, which should be started about four weeks before planting outdoors because it is not cold tolerant. Eggplant is the same, requiring four to six weeks to ensure a healthy plant with the earliest fruit.

While there are a lot of different plants I could have started, we don’t have a whole lot of space to work with, and really, pumpkins and beans do just fine directly in the ground, which will probably be the last things we plant for the garden. Of course, I still have to build a box for a strawberry patch, as I really want to have strawberries this year!