Seedlings

This year I decided to try to save money in my garden budget. This meant buying seeds and starting them indoors rather than buying so many plants from the greenhouse. I have a book, Gardening From Seed, by the domestic queen Martha Stewart, that goes through everything one must know about growing flowers and vegetables from seed. This book has been my learning guide throughout this entire process.

I decided to plant lupins, zinnias, alyssum, and cosmos from seed. The other flower and vegetable seeds I bought can be sown directly outdoors once the soil has warmed enough.

I began my indoor sowing about four weeks before the time I wish to transplant them outdoors. I followed Martha's advice in creating a budget-friendly, do-it-yourself grow system in my basement. Basically, you need a couple of standard office style fluorescent light bulbs and a way to shelve your tray of plantings underneath so that they are about two inches below the light source. The lights must be left on 24 hours a day until the seeds have sprouted, then you may decrease the amount of light to 16 hours per day. The light also warms the soil to the correct temperature for germination.

I had great success with this system in my basement, and I have many little seedlings on the go, ready to move outdoors when the time is right. Before transplanting outdoors, you must remember to "harden off" your sensitive seedlings. Leave them outside during the warm days, bringing them back inside for night, for a week before planting so that they will become hardy to the elements and survive the move.

Not only will you save money by starting your own seeds, you will also satisfy your garden cravings in the weeks leading up to planting time!