Grow a Bountiful Garden from Seed in 6 Simple Steps
Follow these basic steps to be a more successful seed-starter!
Growing most plants from seed is easy as long as you provide the basics that all plants require — soil, heat, light, and water — and then avoid a few common pitfalls.
The Basics
1. Begin by purchasing a commercial seed-starting medium or mixing your own blend. Whichever you way you decide to go, you need the medium to be sterile and fast-draining. I often use a good-quality potting soil (as opposed to a seed-starting mix) that I lighten by adding perlite to improve the drainage. I avoid using seed-starting media that is primarily made of peat, especially those tablet-like peat plugs. Peat has a weird relationship with water — it repels it and repels it, then it sucks it up like crazy and won’t let go of it. Either way, that’s no way to treat tender roots of new seedlings.
2. Fill small, clean containers with the soil mix, slightly moistened. (If using recycled containers, wash them first in a solution of nine parts water to one part chlorine bleach, allowing them to soak for a minimum of 10 minutes.) Plant seeds at the depth advised on the seed packet (usually the same depth as the size of the seed). With very small seeds, sprinkle them over the top of the soil and then…
