5 Biggest Mistakes Made When Starting Seeds Indoors

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This was super helpful. Now I understand why my seedlings died or did not germinate at all. Taking notes for next year…

I have no equipment ,,just putting seeds in dirt on the south window sill. Watering them daily from above. And they grow tall with big leaves with hardly any roots. Thats why I am here, looking on how to avoid that??
I think I found the reason.
I buy starters from the nusery and the root ball is huge with hardly any plant above ground. That is hard to do.

I had the problem of breaking the roots of a plant when transferring it from a seed tray to a small pot.

Do you ever pull the seedlings out of the starting cell mix and plant them into the larger pots? I was thinking this would put the roots in contact with the new nutrient-rich soil ASAP. Is it better to transplant the whole plug of starting mix from the cell, or pull the seedlings out of it (pull the roots out)? This is for flowers BTW.

"Water from the bottom", "Use an old glass aquarium", and the hardening techniques are gold. I wish I had known this years ago. The $ I could have saved…

It's May 2nd. I'm late. But now I'm optimistic.

Thanks!.

I started my seedlings about a week ago in a jiffy seed starter greenhouse thing. They were growing well but, it took about a week to get a nice sunny day. When we finally did I put then out when I checked most of the sprouts looked sunscorched and whithered. What the heck? I thought the sun is the best thing for them

will a happy light work for a grow light?

https://www.youtube.com/@NitasYardAndGarden

The big problem is drop off the kit from your hand and mix all seeds like me:)) and now my vegetable, flowers and others are growing as siblings:)))

The best way to harden off your seedlings is to take them out and put them in a shaded area on a sunny day that way they get the bright light without it being directly on them, I have done this for decades.

Early…then panic

How long do you keep the lights on everyday? 12 hrs?

How much do you water the plants in seed starters I’ve had some plants to go bad on me give me some pointers

thanks for this. i love those trays with the wicking mat. I will def be investing in that in the future once i get some funds saved up

The people I know who have huge green houses have sprinkling systems that water from above.

Thanks for the tips.

Krafty Acres has a diy video on making self watering trays using cloth diapers as the wicking material.
It easy and saves money.

@kraftyacres2191

It's no biggie to start in march if you do seedlings inside.AWESOME ADVUCE. SUCKS TO HAVE LAND BUT TOO MANY TREES FOR LIGHT TO GET THROUGH, i only have a 10 or 25 square foot area that's super Sunny all day, the rest of my garden i do kettuces and garnish greens, cilantro is easy even without too much light.

YOU DID NOT MENTION YOU CAN USE A DIMMER, 2 INCHES WILL "BURN, 🔥, YOU BABIES"….

Who the hell has room for 100s of plants? That's crazy tons of soace for just 100 which is easy, not too many to grow indoors for a month or even 2.

Never had trouble getting seeds started on a refrigerator like he said. Depending on seeds i use plugs or just a bag with damp towel……

Is there some kind of test for a Frost Date?
Like some kind of Frost Date Exam, maybe?

Which is the link for the seedling cell tray for watering below.

I do lazy way too but 2 weeks before last frost, the trees have leaves. I bring them out and put them under the large maple tree.

I break most of the rules and things still work out well for me. The bottom line is that plants' genes tell them to grow, and they grow in a wide variety of conditions. Here is what 50 years of gardening experience has told me about starting plants:
1) Forget about expensive potting soil, you can use the soil right out of your garden. This is what they are going to live the rest of their life in anyway. Just don't use heavy clay soil, use a compost-clay mix.
2) Top watering is fine. Just don't over-water, and definitely water the soil rather than the leaves.
3) My most common mistake is starting too early. Peppers and winter squash need an earlier start than other plants.
4) A south-facing window is helpful, but not sufficient (unless you have only a very few plants and cram them up against the window). I use a window AND grow lights.
5) Everything does better with a heat mat, but it makes the most difference for peppers and cucumbers.
6) I use the "lazy method" of hardening off that he describes in the video.
7) When transplanting, use the "mud method". Soak your pot in water. Fill your hole with water and stir it up to make mud. Then transplant the plant and fill the hole with more mud. This minimizes root damage. Also, if you have to separate multiple seedlings from one pot, submerge the root ball in a bucket of water, then gradually work the roots apart after the soil becomes really gooshy. Then transplant into mud. I hardly ever lose a seedling as a consequence of transplanting. Most act like they didn't even notice being transplanted.

My very first time trying gardening, I did #4 & #5. Everything died. So sad.

53206

Are you implying that a professional grow light doesn't have to be 2 inches from the seedling?

the biggest advantage from fans are less to strengthen but more so to aid the plant in transferring the nutrients and other up and down the stem easier making the plant more active and awake when you walk you transfer blood in the body as normal but when you run you need more oxygen blood… making the plants move will act the same get the plant blood moving faster…

we used to do this by talking to the plant as when you talk to a plant you exhale its air and your voice and breeze of mouth will vibrate the plant…

With the self watering setup you have, does it matter if the cells have slits ? Is it compatible with other brands of cell trays

i feel like my growlights out perform the sun any day of the week homie, other than that great video and good advice for new growers

Love the planting calculator! Thanks Brian

Thank you! I'm new to gardening! Learning everything can be daunting

I like growing tomatoes. This year I am trying seeds. Living in Iowa I like to get my plants in the ground some time between Mother’s Day and Memorial Day. It is April 1st new, so I am thinking now is a good time to plant seeds.

If you start a little later when it gets warmer in the spring, is it possible to just raise the seedlings outside so they’re already used to it? 🙂‍↔️

Spider farmer lights are great for growing…I use mine for cannabis and fruit 🌲🍓

I've been using a heating blanket and it seems to work wonderful. Haha. It's like a heating blanket that stays on for about 8 to 12 hours and I just turn it on everyday and all my stuff is growing within a couple days. But if you have an old heating blanket laying around you could just use that or at least try and see if it works for you. I put mine on medium or high and then you know it has to penetrate the pan that it's in and then it's also in like a little pot so it's heating it up just enough at that point.

this is my first time starting tomatoes and peppers from seed indoors and im confused on the grow light distance. i have two 16w led full spectrum 660nm red grow lights rated at 1900L/5000K daylight. at what distance should these sit from the plants themself? manufacturer says 12 inches but i see others say within 2 inches of the plant then raise/lower as needed? which is it? i just want to make sure they are getting the best light they can get for 16 hours/day.

Solution to starting tomatoes in North Carolina. Start seeds on April 1 indoors. Lots of LED lights after sprouting. Up plant to 5” x 5” square containers On May 1. Transfer outside on June 1 into big containers. Make sure you harden seedlings in the shade outside before letting sun reach them. Water regularly. They will be fine whether you blow air on them or not. Start regular fertilizing as soon as they are outside.