Getting Ready
Tray contains from left to right: Blue Vervain, Anise Hyssop, Prairie Glow Rudbeckia, Blue Mirror Delphinium and Purple Coneflower about one month after planting.
Some of the tools you’ll need are a tray with seedling medium, a light source, a heat source and space to set up your seed production. You can purchase lighting systems or utilize a sunny window. For a heat source, you can buy a heat mat to gently heat your seeds from the bottom, or you can use the top of you refrigerator to warm the seed tray, but you must move it into the light when the seedlings sprout. For a soil medium, use a seedling mix to avoid diseases that attack young seedlings and kill them before they have a chance to grow. When it is time to thin your seedlings, you can use tweezers or small scissors like shown below.
Small scissors to be used when thinning small plants.
The possible options for seedling containment are a tray purchased in the garden section of a business, a plastic food container that’s been washed thoroughly, or individual pots, which can be clay or plastic. They should be deep enough the seedling roots can begin to develop, and it is imperative that drainage and bottom watering be practiced.
The type of lighting can be a choice between a sunny window, LED’s (Light Emitting Diodes), fluorescent or plant lights devoted to the growing of plants indoors. They each have their pros and cons.
A shop light fixture and fluorescent bulbs can be purchased from a big box or farm supply store. They are pretty inexpensive and can grow plants easily into transplant size sprouts. The disadvantage is that they are difficult to dispose of because not every store will recycle them for you when they burn out. They will last for years with proper care.
LED’s or Light Emitting Diodes last a very long time, and may have a pinkish cast. I personally have switched to these after many years using the fluorescent type. I have found seeds to germinate even better under these types. Two years ago, I purchased 2 four foot LED plant lights to replace the shop lights, and they have worked well for germinating seeds.
