This is the final reminder to get your seed starting supplies in order. Spring, and a new growing season is rapidly approaching and you’ll want to make sure that everything’s on hand that you’ll need to grow your own transplants indoor.

If you haven’t ordered your vegetable seeds yet, shame on you. Okay, I confess I haven’t finished placing my orders yet either, it’s not too late but what are you waiting for… Spring?

Soiless Seed Starting Mix

Once your seeds are in hand make sure that you have the other seed starting essentials for indoor growing. Of course there’s the sterile soiless seed starting mixture that you’ll plant those favorite varieties of heirloom seeds into. And you’ll need flats, containers, trays, soil blocks, peat pots, or plugs to hold the seed starting mixture.

While I start my seeds in a growing medium that doesn’t contain any fertilizer, it won’t be long before those seedlings are ready for their first dose of organic seedling fertilizer. So don’t wait until those hungry seedlings are beginning to look limp and pale before you think about your fertilizer.

Plant Grow Lights

Finally, test your plant grow lights to make sure that your bulbs or fluorescent tubes are still working. If you’ve used the grow lights heavily for more than a season or two it might be wise to secure a couple of spare tubes just in case one blows out during the upcoming growing season.

A good light source in the most important requirement for successfully growing healthy transplants form seed indoors. Next week I’ll post an entry on the convenience and features available to the home gardener by using light carts or grow light stands to produce large numbers of healthy transplants for spring planting.

Other Related Vegetable Gardening Posts:

• Starting Tomato Plants
• Seed Starting Essentials
• Seed Starting Woes
• Seed Starting
• Plant Grow Lights