I hope you have a good nail file...

...because you're hands are about to get dirty.  Ya know, one of those nail files with the pointy end that you use to clean out under your fingernails?  Okay, so I couldn't think of a witty title for "Seedlings-A How To."  But back on topic--I don't know about where you live, but here on the east coast it has been unseasonably warm and according to the experts it's going to stay that way.  This means, even though its early, we may not see another frost this season.  The average last frost date for the Mid-Atlantic is usually the last week of April.  Why am I wowing you with frost dates when I'm supposed to be getting back on topic after my how to in fingernail grooming?  Because your last frost date (LFD) is how you choose when to start your seedlings!

My seedlings.

Seedlings are plants you start indoors from seeds, harden off (more on that later), and then plant outside at the proper time.  This gives them a much better chance of surviving the harsh outdoors than simply sowing the seeds directly in the ground for less sturdy and slower growing veggies that need a longer summer season than your growing zone has.  Some seeds should be started indoors as early as 6-8 weeks before the LFD. You can find out your LFD from numerous websites, but I use Sprout Robot and Smart Gardener (see links) .  These have the added benefit of telling you which seeds to start when so you don't have to tackle creating a to do list by staring at the backs of all your seed packets and taking notes for hours.  The first seeds you generally start are peppers and tomatoes because they are slow growers and certain types of herbs.  I currently have only started my hot and sweet peppers and lavender.

Most of my other early starter plants I'll buy as transplants from the store.  Some plants are just much harder to start from seeds, which is why so many stores have them as transplants.  If you're starting your first veggie garden this year, I'd recommend getting peppers, tomatoes, eggplant...and essentially anything other than lettuce and spinach as a transplant from the store.  One less variable in your garden and much easier to have a successful crop with the seedlings already grown and hardened off.  This also helps with taking the science out of picking the variety of each plant that will work well in your area.  Your local store will have a selection that is already picked for what will work in your area, how convenient!  Now, what NOT to plant indoors first.  In addition to the plants that are harder to start indoors like tomatoes, many things are such fast growers that you don't need to start them early and can simply sow them directly outdoors when the time is right.  For me, this includes all squash, winter and summer (some people do start summer squash indoors but they always grow far too fast for me), potatoes, lettuce, spinach, peas, beans, and carrots.

Waterlogged basil-see it rot!

Top clear tray, seed tray, water tray

Planting Trays.  I always do my seeds in one of the giant seed starting trays.  It has holes in the bottom of each seed container, and another tray under that to catch the extra water.  Each time you water your seedlings, if the extra water isn't soaked back up by the plants after one day, discard it.  I usually pour it into one of my potted plants.  This is important because you want your seedlings moist, not wet or sitting in water.  Wet or waterlogged seedlings can lead to root rot or gross mold in the dirt.  These trays also come with a clear top, which keeps the seed pods from drying out and keeps them warm from the sun's rays.  You want to place the finished tray near a window that gets a lot of sunlight so the rays can warm up those seeds.

Pods or Dirt?  As for the planting, I use these wonderful little pods that expand when you water them but also contain a netting to hold themselves together.  Using potting dirt is very messy when you go to transplant but with the netting pods you just scoop it out instead of having to dig the roots out of the dirt.  There are also plain dirt pods that expand to the proper amount of dirt when watered but without the less-mess netting.  I'm also very tempted in the future to use a pot maker where you make little pots out of newspaper, but alas, I'm saving that expense for another year.  Another cool idea I have yet to try is a paper egg carton as a seed starter pot.  Whichever way you choose, once you have your dirt in a pot, then place 2 seeds in each pod.  Some seeds won't sprout and this gives you a better shot at having 1 plant for each seed pod.  If both sprout, simply pluck the weakling of the two out once the plants are larger. Keep the pods moist and re-water as they dry out.  With the clear top on this shouldn't be too often.  As they get bigger, transplant them to larger pots if it's not time to plant them outdoors yet with potting soil or some soil mixed with compost from your garden.  Potting soil is best because it retains water differently than garden soil and already has fertilizer in it.


Tip No. 1-Handy tip for those plants that need to be transferred to larger pots before going outside, keep the transplant pots from your store bought seedlings!  They may just look like cheap crappy plastic throwaways, but boy will they come in handy next year when you need to transplant your seedlings to larger pots.  Having these on hand will save you from spending $3-5 each for small ceramic or plastic pots.  If only I had been on Pinterest last year to see all its wonderful suggestions on turning garbage into a useful item, dern.  I've also seen folks origami-style creating larger transplant pots from newspaper, but this sure gets to be messy if the plants are still indoors when you water and you don't have extra water catching trays and I imagine even then the bottom will get soggy and fall through.


Tip No. 2-Also, be sure to label your seedlings with a garden pen and some labels.  Unless you're an expert, you're not going to know what's what by the time you need to transplant them outdoors and different plants need different trellising, room, sun, companion plants, etc.  Throwing unknown seedlings in dirt in a random assortment rather than a carefully planned bed is not your best bet (I say from experience).  You'd be amazed at how many plants are bad for other veggies!  Garden pen is important because sharpies simply can't take the water/sun combo and will wear off as the season wears on, yet another fun mistake I've made that led to my planned garden turning to the random assortment method.

So get out there in this lovely weather and get some seeds growing!  It's so hot in the Mid-Atlantic for this time of year that you can probably even get away with putting your seedling pots outside during the daytime.  And then be sure you have that nail file/toothbrush for your fingernails handy.  Or an appointment at the nail salon afterward where they can wonder if you ever bathe.  Ya filthy animal.