Seed Starting

It's seed starting time! I have been looking forward to seed starting since it started getting cold last year. As the days inch closer and closer to spring, im trying to get as many seeds started as possible. So far, its been quite the journey.

Seed starting is somewhat new to me, especially inside of a home. I have experience seed starting inside a greenhouse with controlled warm temperatures and plenty of light. Seeds start quickly inside greenhouses, so I figured inside my house would be similar. That was not the case. I also am new to soil blocking, so this first go around taught me a lot. For my first round of seeds, I started statice, cress, and sweet peas. My soil blocks were the perfect size for the statice and cress but too small for my sweet peas. Lesson number one: get the large soil blocker next year.

The next challenge I faced was temperature and light. I started these seeds without a heat mat, or a grow light, thinking a warm room and a bright window would be fine. I was proven wrong quickly. My sweetpeas a leggy but have germinated well. As for my statice and cress, well they aren't so happy. Of the 50 cress seeds I started, only about 4 have germinated. The statice has about 12 seeds that have germinated. Lesson number two: use a heat mat and grow lights if starting seeds inside. So I got myself a heat mat, and a grow light to start seeds properly!

This first round of seed starting didn't go quite as planned, but I have to say I'm grateful for the lessons I've learned from it. Practice makes perfect, as they say, so I'll be starting more seeds this weekend to get another round under my belt before spring hits.

Happy planting!

Kayla