Seed Starting Supplies
Starting from seed can be less expensive than buying starter plants, because a pack of seeds can be as cheap as 25 cents. Add some cheap starter mix or potting soil and some Styrofoam or solo cups and BAM, you’ve got an indoor seed starting setup. Throw them in a south facing window and TADA!!! You did it. It With that said, seed starting can also become quite the operation. As I said earlier the seed catalogs will steal your heart. The descriptions are so whimsical and they just make you want to grow them so bad lol. It’s very easy to just keep adding to that cart. I’m so incredibly guilty of this it’s not even funny. Also if you start investing in lighting and seeds and specialty soil and seed trays and bottom trays etc. the costs will add up really fast.
Now is all this extra stuff necessary? Well, it all depends on your goals as a gardener, if you are going for a big garden it’ll help. If your just starting out and seeing what you can do I would say it’s probably not the best way to spend your money. If your just starting out, my personal advice is to get your space set up and put the money into where you’re growing because that is going to be where your plants actually live. You can always direct sow your seeds into your garden beds, in fact, I never started anything indoors until just a few years ago. Before that I just threw the seeds in the soil and hoped for the best and honestly it worked just fine. I’ve had huge gardens from haphazardly putting seeds in the soil and hoping for the best and I’ve had major garden failures when I carefully started a ton of seeds inside and transplanted them out only to watch them get all diseased and die. It honestly doesn’t matter which road you take, the important thing is to take one. As you go through each garden season you will inherently learn what does and doesn’t work for your situation
The basic seed starting equipment.
Containers:
Seed pots, multi cell trays, solo cups, foam cups and toilet paper rolls can all be used to start seeds in. As you can see you can go extremely basic or get more pricey. My suggestion when you're first starting out is to lean towards the inexpensive side of things instead of spending a ton of money on something you're not completely sure you want to do long term. The most important aspect of your container is to ensure there are holes in the bottom. It doesn't matter if they come with them or if you poke them yourself, that water needs to drain.
1020 Trays
1020 Trays for me personally are a Must have. Whether I'm starting in pots or solo cups, the 1020 tray is a necessity. You can fit all your cups and/or pots in them with ease and they're sturdy enough to move fully loaded with plants. Now, if you want to get fancy, you can add the inserts (shown above) and those will hold your pots steady in your trays. they all nest together as 1.
Seed Starting Medium:
Seed starting mix is a finer mix of soil rich in nutrients and typically vermiculite to hold moisture. Seedlings need a damp, loose soil in order to be able to push their way through. To the right are some of my favorite starting mixes. You'll notice not all of the products are labeled "seed starting mix", you can also use a container mix or potting soil. The only type I try to stay away from when starting seeds is "garden soil". Garden soil will have bigger chunks of wood in it and can be too heavy for the seedlings to push through. My personal favorites are the Fox Farm or the Miracle Grow Performance. I have had great luck with both.
Lighting:
Lighting is essential for growing, but don't get into the trap of thinking you need to go get a bunch of fancy grow lights. In fact, I would encourage you to invest in shop lights instead. Now don't get me wrong, grow lights will provide a more formulated light spectrum which mimics the sun's rays, but in my experience, I haven't noticed enough difference to sway me against the use of shop lights. I have various types of shop lights in my setup. I have purchased the $20 lights from Walmart, and I have also purchased various types on Amazon. I haven't noticed much difference in plant response to any of them really. I recently purchased the lights featured to the right, and I think they're my favorite so far. I have 2 hanging on a shelf and it's providing enough light for my seedlings.
Heat Mats:
Heat mats are not a requirement, but they will help a lot when it comes to germinating things like tomatoes, peppers, luffa gourds. Some plants like their soil to be nice and warm in order to germinate, and a heat mat will provide just enough heat to make that happen. Heat mats are inexpensive, I personally use the Vivosun brand and get them from Amazon. I can get a 2 pack for around $30 and they're the same size as my 1020 trays. You simply slide it under your try, plug it in and wait for them to germinate. When my seedlings have their first set of true leaves I'll simply take the mat out from underneath them. It's that simple. If you don't have a heat mat, you can simply put your trays on top of the fridge, or even the dryer. It just needs to be somewhere a few degrees warmer than the rest of the house. If you heat with wood, you could place them near the wood stove. Do not place them on the wood stove as you'll likely melt your trays and overheat the seeds.
Shelving:
Shelving units are the most economical if starting seeds on a larger scale indoors. Wire shelving that is 48" wide is perfect for hanging the shop lights from and the shelves fit the 1020 trays perfect. A reasonably priced unit will cost less than $100 at your local Lowes or Walmart.