Jumpstart Your Spring Vegetable Garden: How to Start Seeds Indoors

Spring has sprung! March is one of the best months to kick-start your garden, and what better way to embrace the season than by planting seeds for a bountiful harvest? Here on our beautiful Central Coast, the weather can be unpredictable during this time of year. Whether still thawing out from the winter chill or the temperatures have started to warm, we have just the solution!  How about creating your very own vegetable garden indoors from seeds?  With rising food costs, a push for sustainability, and the desire to reduce food waste, more and more people are growing their own produce. And, seeds are usually far more economical than purchasing nursery plants. Best of all, these tiny seeds may yield abundant harvests, offering incredible bang for your buck.  Sure, some seeds are best sown directly into the ground as soon as any chance of frost disappears. But there are abundant varieties of vegetables that can be started from seed indoors, so why not get a head start?  Excited but overwhelmed? We’re here to guide you in creating your very own vegetable garden from seeds! You won’t need much to begin. In fact, you may already have a few items around the house, garage, or storage unit. 

A Few Necessities

Seed Packets

Whether you purchase seeds online or from a nursery or home improvement store, make sure that you select vegetables that will thrive in the current season. The seed packets will indicate the optimum times of year for planting based on geographical location, also known as your USDA hardiness zone. A few warm-season crops that do well starting as seed and then transplanted into containers or the ground include tomatoes and peppers.

Containers or Planters

No need for fancy pottery. Getting started can be as easy as using a yogurt container, egg carton, or empty can. Just make sure to poke or drill a few small holes in whatever vessel you choose for drainage. A convenient option is to purchase seed-starting kits from your local hardware stores or nurseries.

Soil

With seeds, it’s best to use a specially-formulated seed-starting mix not potting mix or bagged garden or top soil. Fill the containers to the top quarter. 

Starting Your Seeds

Each vegetable has its own growing needs. Your seed packets will offer this specific information. Following the packet’s instructions, press each seed down into the soil. The depth will be indicated on the packet as well as lighting and watering requirements. Be sure to label the seeds. It’s easy to forget which seeds are in which container. Once you’ve planted your seeds, you’ll want to create a type of greenhouse effect. First, lightly mist the soil covering the seeds. Then cover the containers with plastic wrap.

Ideal Indoor Environment

Optimum seed growing conditions usually require specific amounts of both sunlight and darkness. To ensure you’re providing adequate amounts of each, consider using an inexpensive LED grow light with a timer.   Aim the light two to four inches above the soil, adjusting the light as the plants grow larger, maintaining this distance between the plant and light. Also, keep the seeds away from any drafts.

Seed Care

Follow the packet’s watering instructions. Once the seeds germinate (sprout), you can remove the plastic wrap or cover. When the seedlings sprout their second set of leaves, change your watering method. Once a week, use a solution of water and liquid fertilizer. Be sure not to overwater. 

When to Transplant the Seedlings Outdoors

When the risk of frost has melted away, and your seeds have transformed into tiny seedling miracles, it may be time to prepare them for the move outdoors.  Rather than thrusting your seedlings outside, you’ll need to help them adjust from their stable indoor environment to the outdoors where weather (including temperature and wind) and light are variable. This gradual transition is known as “hardening off.”

Here are a few tips to harden off your seedlings:

• Approximately two weeks before transplanting, choose a spot outdoors that’s sheltered from the wind and offers a mix of both sun and shade throughout the day.
• Initially, set the seedlings outside for a short time—perhaps an hour or so—eventually graduating to their being outside all day. 
• Be sure to keep the soil moist.

Growing your own food is so rewarding. From seed to seedling to full maturity, with just a little effort and a few supplies, you’ll soon be enjoying your harvest. Celebrate your accomplishments perhaps with a garden feast!

We promise—nothing tastes better than homegrown.