Seed Starting

We begin starting our vegetables and herbs from seed in early March. We utilize a variety of seed starting methods. Park's Bio Domes, AeroGardens, peat and plastic pots are everywhere for a few months. As the seeds sprout they are moved out into the greenhouse.

While in the greenhouse, they stay warm on seedling heat mats and wait to be transplanted into bigger pots or directly into the garden.

Why do we do it this way? It comes down to personal preference. Everyone is different and that is why there are so many seed starting methods and products out there.

Methods

I have tried using the black, plastic six packs. You know that ones you get plants in, at the local garden center. They are very thin molded plastic. Some people like these. They are inexpensive and lightweight. But after the 4,000th plastic paper cut I received through my non-latex gloves, I declared Never Again.

Expanding peat pellets. They come as flat disks. You soak them in water and they swell up. They have a divot in the center where you place the seed.

I find that these tend to expand inconsistently. I had seedlings leaning every which way. Also I had a problem with them developing green algae on the outer surface. The greenhouse tends to be humid which contributes to this.

This little item makes little pots from strips of newspaper. Similar to a peat pot, you plant the whole thing in the ground when it comes time to transplant. The Pot Maker itself is made of hardwood & will last you a lifetime.

I have this item. I do use it occasionally. Not for starting large amounts of seeds though. It's good for seeds that sprout quickly, like sunflowers and peas. They are ready to transplant before the newspaper started to disintegrate. The newspaper pots don't hold up to a lot of shifting around, but the will fill in in a pinch.

When it comes to economy or starting a garden on a super tight budget, this one wins on the basis of cost. It uses old newspapers that you were going to use as mulch or send to be recycled, so the cost is nothing. Especially if you got the newspaper from someone else for free.

Sprouting in damp paper towels? This one I never understood. Unless the seeds are large, like soybeans or larger, I would need tweezers to grab them. I do not have the patience.

Direct Seed Method

We rarely direct seed. The germination rates seemed really low when direct seeded versus starting indoors. I chalked it up to more controlled & warmer conditions indoors until I realized what was happening.

We have a lot of birds in our area. I feed them during the cooler months by throwing stale bread and seeds on the lawn. Apparently they can't distinguish between seeds for them and seeds for the garden. The birds that watch me plant the seeds and wait until I have gone into the house to steal them. I have observed them from the kitchen window. They will walk along the rows I have just planted, scratch the ground and eat the seeds.

The only things I directly seed now are carrot, rutabaga, radish and soybean seeds. They do not appreciate being transplanted. Once they are planted, I cover the rows with a floating row or portable greenhouse cover.

I have had the Park's Double Bio Dome for about 5 years. It is my favorite seed starting method for flowers and vegetables. The one drawback is that I can not start larger seeds, like pumpkin and sunflower in it.

Each year I purchase the Bio Sponges that fit into the styrofoam block. They have a small hole in the top where you drop in the seed. There is no worrying about the planting depth. My seeds sprout faster in a Bio Dome than any other method.

Those are my tomato, eggplant and pepper seedlings in the photo of the planting block above.

The seedlings all grow very uniformly. They are well spaced, they do not shade or crowd each other. The lower tray is deep and waters the plants from the bottom. They develop nice, big root systems. This cuts down on the chances of things getting green and fuzzy.

They are also the easiest to transplant. I let the sponges dry out for a day or two. This causes them to shrink back from the walls of the planting block a bit. Then I just push from the bottom of the block and they pop up and out.

From the block they can go right into the ground. The seeds started in late winter go into plastic pots to await their final transplant into the garden beds.

Last year the sponge refills cost me about $14.95 for a bag of 80. That is a cost per seedling of 18.5 cents. This may be a bit pricey for some, but I have such great success with them that I feel it is worth the cost.

You can find them, and more seed starting supplies, on the Park Seed Website.

I like to use peat pots to start larger seeds like Zinnia, sunflower, pumpkin and squash. They really do not fit in the Bio Dome sponges. I could get one in there, but I am in the habit of placing at least 2 seeds in each unit. I hate it when I have an unsprouted sponge. It seems wasteful.

Besides, some winter squash seedlings are so large that they would out grow the dome before the other plants were fully sprouted.

Small peat pots give me enough room to start 2 or 3 large seeds in each. This cuts down on the chance that I will get an unsprouted pot. I also like the fact that I can plant the entire peat pot in the ground.

Peat pots are inexpensive, although the price has increased in the last 2 years. In 2007 round 3" pots were 3 cents each. Four cents in 2008 and 5 cents in 2009. Add 10 cents for the soil mix and you get 15 cents per plant. Still, they are a bargain compared to direct seeding and letting the birds eat half a packet of seed.

I would say peat pots are my second favorite seed starting method.

Third favorite seed starting method would have to be the Aerogarden. It is by far the most expensive seed starter I own. I bought it one cold January afternoon in 2007. I had the flu and was stuck in bed for days. Have you seen the Aerogarden infomercial?

It was cold, dark and snowy outside. I was sick and vaguely delirious. All I remember was images of crisp lettuce and fresh herbs that could be growing on my kitchen counter. Out came the plastic and 3 days later our UPS driver Sean was knocking on my front door.

The Aerogarden is a airponic or aeroponic system where the roots grow without soil. The are kept moist by the near constant flow of nutrient-rich water in the base of the unit. The seeds are in a small sponge that has water flowing over it when the unit is running. Hydroponics is similar but uses pebbles or rock wool to support the roots.

The Aerogarden company sells ready-made kits that will give you cherry tomatoes, Italian herbs, flowers and other assorted plants and vegetables. You can also start your own in either starter sponges or a planter block similar to the Bio Dome block.

I find that the kits that they sell work well. But when I used the planter block I choose my own seeds. Some of my choices did not appreciate the very wet conditions. Dwarf basil sprouted quickly and grew well but red basil (Red Rubin) had a very low germination rate. Only about 50% of the sponges (GrowPods) sprouted and the plants, while in the unit, never developed past 2 true leaves.

After transplantation into small plastic pots of potting mix, they were very slow to grow and are just now getting good red color. They have 6 leaves compared to their dwarf basil cousins, transplanted at the same time, who look like tiny shrubs.

Transplanting is more difficult than the Bio Dome because the roots hang down out of the block into the water below, about 4 inches. They get all tangled together. Also the sponges are tiny. So there I am with a wet mass of plant roots trying to push the sponges up through the block with my pinky while holding the rest of the roots back. Its like Plant Twister.

I would not transplant these seedling directly into the garden. They are too small and have such long roots that I think transplant shock would be a problem.

The original Aerogarden seed starting block holds 66 tiny GrowPods (seed sponges impregnated with nutrients). Putting aside the cost of the unit itself and a GrowPods seed starting kit, it costs approximately $20 for a refill pack of 75. That is just about 26 cents each. Don't forget to account for the cost of electricity to run the unit.

I do like it for the fresh lettuce and dill in January though!

Conclusion

What I like are nice self-contained units. No tangled roots. No vicious paper cuts. Less tedious but more potting soil.

I'm sure there are at least a half dozen more seed starting methods that I have not thought of. Just use what works for you.

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