Seeding Flowers Indoors:
An Inexpensive Way to a Beautiful Summer Garden
Every year you plan that THIS will be the year you have pots and pots
of lush plants on your balcony or deck. Then you visit your local nursery
in the spring and reality hits -– the cost for your fantasy is
just outrageous!
Sound familiar?
But you can have the planters of your dreams at a fraction of the cost
and with a choice of varieties far beyond what the local garden center
offers. How? Start your own flower seeds now.
If you've never grown from seeds indoors before, it's best to begin
with just a few types. Easy starters: Trailing lobelia and petunias
make a bright and simple garden for sunny spots. Licorice plant and
dwarf nasturtiums are also attractive.
Once you've decided on your plants, you must know two things to determine
when the seeds should be started: the last frost date for your area,
and the time required before transplanting.
• The last frost date is the date beyond which there is a low
chance (usually about 10%) of temperatures at or below the freezing
mark. This is important because many traditional plants for hanging
baskets are tender, that is, they will not survive when frozen. You
may already know what the frost date is for your area. If not ask gardening
neighbors or your local gardening center. If you are in the USA, visit
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/documentlibrary/freezefrost/Spring32F_hires.jpg
for information from the national Climatic Data Center.
• The time required before transplanting is different for each
type of flower. You'll see this listed in seed catalogs or on the seed
packet. For example, a packet might tell you to "start indoors
6-8 weeks before last frost date." Some seeds such as nasturtiums,
zinnias, or cosmos may be sown directly outside but if you have to wait
after the danger of a frost has passed, you may want to get a jump on
spring by starting those inside too.
Licorice plants and geraniums need 12 weeks to sprout from seed. So
if my last frost date is May 15th, I'll want to start them around the
last week of February. Petunias, impatiens and lobelia require 10-12
weeks, so I would start them around the first of March. Morning
glories, which make a beautiful privacy fence from a plain piece of
latticework, need six weeks from start to transplant, but can't be put
outside until two weeks after the last frost date. This would mean starting
them indoors about mid-April. I'd start nasturtiums and zinnias about
then too.
Your goal is to promote germination (with heat and water) and seedling
growth (with light) while preventing your seedlings' chief enemy, "damping-off"
(with air circulation and proper drainage). Here are some tips for successful
seed growing.
• Use plastic containers, about 2" deep, fairly wide and
with multiple drainage holes. Growers' cell packs are ideal but you
can also use yogurt or cottage cheese containers as long as you sanitize
them with a mild bleach solution (one part bleach to nine parts
water) for 15 minutes and then punch several holes in the bottoms.
• Use commercial seed-starting mix. It's sterilized and contains
the necessary food to aid germination. You might also want to try using
a product specially formulated to prevent damping-off.
• Plant seeds sparingly. You'll have to thin them anyway. Some
growers plant only two seeds per cell pot. If you're planting in flat
trays, place seeds 1/2" to 1" (1 to 2.5 cm) apart, depending
on the seed size, and space the rows 1 1/2" to 2" (3-5 cm)
apart.
Make a depression in the soil with your finger or a pencil and plant
the seed about three times as deep as its diameter. If the packet says
the seed requires light to germinate, then put it just on the surface
of the soil.
• Set the containers in a water-filled tray. This allows the pots
to draw water from the bottom without disturbing the seeds. Cover tray
and pots with plastic to help hold moisture and heat.
• Place the entire set-up on a heat source between 75 - 85°
F (24 - 29° C). Although a heat mat designed for this purpose is
ideal, you can also use the top of a fridge, or a spot near a radiator
or space heater.
• Once the seeds have germinated, remove the plastic and put the
pots (with the water tray) near a light source at a reduced temperature.
Good light is crucial at this point to ensure good growth. Fluorescent
shop lights within a few inches of the tops of the seedlings are perfectly
suited. You can also try a sunny south window but ideally the light
should be on the plants for 16 hours out of each 24-hour period. In
my climate, we just don't have 16 hours of daylight this time of year!
Seedlings respond best to daytime
temperatures of 60 - 70° F (16 - 21°C) and night temperatures
of 50 - 60° F (10 - 16°C).
• Here's where it becomes critical to prevent damping-off. One
way to do this is to let an electric fan blow gently across the surface
of the soil during daylight hours. There are also specially formulated
products on the market that can be applied to the surface of the soil
when you are planting seeds that will help stop damping-off from developing.
• When the seedlings have developed their first set of true leaves
(not the round little germination leaves), pull all but one plant per
cell. It's hard, I know, to pull up living plants but it's necessary
to prevent overcrowding that will kill all of them.
• When the seedlings have developed their second set of true leaves,
start watering them (from the bottom) with fertilizer diluted to quarter
strength.
• A week or 10 days before you plan to plant them outside, start
"hardening off" the tender seedlings. Stop fertilizing, and
cut the amount of water in half. If possible, keep them in a cooler
space inside and start introducing them to the direct sun and fluctuating
temperatures of the outdoors. Begin by setting the trays outside for
an hour in the mid-morning or mid-afternoon ad gradually lengthen the
time to several hours. Don't put them out in heavy rain or cold, strong
wind and be sure to bring them indoors at night.
Follow these steps and you'll have a bounty of young, strong plants
to fill your hanging baskets and pots. This year, you'll have the planters
of your dreams!
Debbie Rodgers owns and operates Paradise Porch, and is dedicated to helping
people create outdoor living spaces that nurture and enrich them. Visit
her on the web at
www.paradiseporch.com
and get a free report on "Eight easy ways to create privacy in your
outdoor space". Mail to
debbie@paradiseporch.com
