Starting From Seed
Introduction
One of the more compelling reasons for starting seed indoors is that it provides an opportunity to get an early start on the gardening season. Another advantage for starting transplants from seed is that you can grow varieties not readily available in nurseries or garden stores. Seed catalogs and companies from around the world give gardeners tens of thousands of varieties to chose from.
To start, purchase 4 foot shop lights available at any hardware store or home improvement center. Unless you are starting African violets or exotic species from seed, regular fluorescent bulbs work just fine. Purchase light weight chain to hang the shop lights from the ceiling and hooks to attach them to the ceiling. The lights attach to the chain with hooks to raise the lights as the transplants grow.
Another alternative is to make grow light shelving from pvc pipe. Check this link out for building details - My Garden Guide Click on the Artificial Lighting button, then click on the Building a Light Rack link.
A timer to plug the lights into is important so that the amount of time the lights are on is consistent, 12 to 16 hours a day is recommended. A table to put under the lights and transplants on can be just about anything. Old card tables, saw horses and plywood, benches, banquet tables-- anything that works. Depending on how many lights obtained, buy several electrical outlet strips and extension cords. Purchase soil-less seed starting medium or formula (contains part peat moss and part vermiculite) and some plastic seed flats or trays. Dirt from your garden or elsewhere is not recommended for starting seeds indoors.
Seed Starting
Pour the seed starter mix into a plastic wash tub and add some water and mix to the consistency of damp sand. Use a small bowl, spoon, spatula or the cell pack itself to scoop the formula into the cells. Pack the starter mix firmly with your fingers until it is about 3/8 of an inch from the top of the cell. Carefully open the seed pack so that the package flap remains intact and not torn. Fold a crease in the middle of the seed package flap to facilitate seed withdrawal. Tap the seeds from the package into the cell. Add three seeds per cell, unless the seed is old or a poor germinator (in either case add more seeds per cell), and cover with about a 1/8 of an inch of starter mix packed firmly on top of the seeds. Rule of thumb is that you use three times the diameter of the seed you're planting to determine the sowing depth of your seed. Bottom water the newly seeded cell packs, by placing them in a flat and pouring about an inch of water in the flat. Water is drawn up into the cell packs by a physics gradient called capillary action. This takes awhile, and when the seed starter on the top of each cell looks wet, you are done. Next, cover the tray with the clear plastic dome and place it on a germinating pad.
Many seeds germinate at different temperatures, but most garden vegetable seeds germinate best at 70 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit. Any warm place will do. You may set seed trays on top of the refrigerator or water heater, just so the seeds don't get too hot. A germinating pad ordered from a garden catalog is useful, however it is not absolutely necessary that a germinating pad be used. The important detail here is to make sure the seed starter mix stays evenly moist and does not dry out. When the seedlings emerge, remove the plastic dome and place them under the lights with the light positioned about an inch above the sprouts. Keep raising the lights as the seedlings grow and continue to keep the starter mix and sprouts evenly moist. A spray bottle for misting is great for watering young seedlings because it doesn't disturb the soil less mixture around the seedling.