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Starting Seeds A Master Gardener Notebook By Dr. Larry Dowell
“God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit, you shall have them for food.’” Genesis 1:29
Starting plants indoors is easy. All you need is a container, some potting soil and a sunny window. While this is true, there is much more to the process, some planning needs to be done and the proper materials obtained. I was so eager to start a garden when I first owned a plot 45 years ago that I cut the tops off of some paper milk cartons, found some dry dirt under a building, planted some tomato seeds, and set them in the window. I kept them watered but they died anyway. The next year I was prepared with market packs, potting soil, seeds and a grow light. I started in January and by March had some very leggy plants, but nowhere to put them. I had started too early, back to the drawing board.
With the greenhouse now full plants why would a gardener want to start plants indoors? There are some advantages. After the purchase of basic equipment, it is probably more economical if you discount the time involved in the care and feeding of the plants. While the nurseries offer a good variety of plants, they cannot have everything and you may want to raise a special plant. I have seed saved for several years from a friend who gave me one superb tomato and each year the seed is saved from one tomato and started indoors. The plants are special to me. Another purpose in raising from seed is timing. The nurseries close early. One way to have tomatoes until frost is to plant late for a late crop. This is best done at home. Most of all is entertaining and satisfying to watch the seed emerge and the plants develop, to place the plants in the garden and then harvest your very own home grown fruits. |