Transcript
Hi, this is Brooke Edmonds with Oregon State University Extension. Today, we're going to be talking about starting seeds. So, late February through March is a good time to start some of your cool-season crops like lettuce, spinach, or broccoli. It's great to start, but you might want to wait a few weeks to start some of the warm-season crops like tomatoes or eggplant. You'll want to pick a great-sized pot, so don't pick too large of a pot; go with a smaller size. You can always transplant up as the plants grow.
You want to pick a fine growing media, so look for a seed starting mix or a fine potting soil to use. The back of the seed packet will tell you a lot of useful information to get the seeds started. There will be information on the days it will take for the seeds to germinate, plant spacing, and even into the growing season how long it will take those plants to produce fruit.
The package will also tell you about the planting depth, so you don't want to plant your seeds too deep. Place them on the soil surface, and then you can lightly sprinkle some more of your potting soil or seed starting mix over the top, and then mist those pots and keep them moist as the seeds germinate.
When you choose a container to plant into, you can buy a ready-made kit that has lots of small-diameter spaces for the plants to go into. Usually, it comes with a tray and even a humidity chamber lid that you can place on top to keep the seeds in a humid environment when they're germinating. You can also use recycled materials, so if you have an old berry box, those are great. They have a lid that acts as a humidity chamber, and they usually have drainage holes built in.
If your plants are getting a little bit too large for the smaller diameter pots, you can always transplant up. So, you can purchase larger diameter pots and move them up into these larger sizes. You can reuse these containers from year to year; just make sure to wash them well in between seasons.
You'll also want to grow them under lights if you don't have a greenhouse of your own. You can easily install these using shop lights from a garden center or a home store. Make sure that they're low enough, and you can always move them up as the plants start to grow.
Thanks for watching, and good luck in your garden this year!
Learn about starting vegetables from seeds. Start inside small pots in the early spring and then move them to larger pots as they grow. Use the right soil, pots, and lights to produce healthy plants! Get more in-depth details to answer your questions from the publication Growing Your Own.
