Growing plants from seeds is one of the best ways to start gardening earlier this season. However, each plant has unique seed starting requirement so it’s always better to start small by growing just few varieties. But, do you know when is the right time to start seeds indoors to grow strong and healthy plants? No, keep on reading the article.
When To Start Seeds Indoors?
Not all plants have the same requirements and each vegetable or fruit will be a bit different on its heat requirement and speed of growth. However, the right time for sowing seeds depends on your last frost date of your area.
Some vegetables like tomatoes, eggplants and peppers have very long growing season. If you want to grow any of them, you should sow them 49 days before your last frost date. Simply means, plant them outdoors two weeks after the last frost date of your area. This way you will have healthy seedlings that get established quickly.
Another best way to sow seeds indoors is by calculating sowing and planting dates. You can do it by using seed-starting date calculator which gives you best results. All you need to do is, just enter the last frost date of your area and presto. The sowing and planting dates for 28 vegetables, 13 herbs and 15 companion flowers are calculated easily just like a magic.
Never Plant Them Too Late:
As I said earlier all vegetable plants need certain time to reach maturity and to produce healthy harvest. And if you sow them too late, you won’t be harvesting much as you expected. Because, the weather will get colder, temperatures drop off at night and days get too shorter. And there is no point in sowing tomatoes in July and expect them to produce crop by the end of September.
Whatever you want to grow from seeds, just read the packet before sowing them. Because, timing is everything!
When you grow plants from seeds, buying pack of seeds is usually cheaper than buying individual seedlings from nursery.
While some nursery plants are grown nice, other may be poor quality. When you plant your own seeds, you will have complete control over your young seedlings.
Growing seeds instead of transplants is one of the best and easy ways especially for beginners. So that you don’t need to stress over things like the timing of starting seeds or the care for young seedlings.
Tips Before You Start Seeds Indoors:
- Make a list of things you want to grow this time and research about popular beginner vegetables to start with.
- Remember that not all seeds germinate at the same time, some won’t germinate and some will inexplicably die off later.
- Better to provide artificial light for your seedlings, especially if you’re sowing them indoors in late winter. A grow light will keep your seedlings from getting too leggy.
- Always use clean container when sowing seeds indoors. Be sure to poke holes in the sides near the bottom of containers to allow excess water to drain. Transplant your seedlings in to larger containers at some point before moving them in to garden.
- Don’t forget to label your containers after sowing seeds, especially when you are testing out different varieties of the same plant.
- Rotate your seedlings often so they grow evenly and if you’re using a grow light, raise it few inches above the tallest seedlings every couple of days.
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