Seedlings

Starting seeds indoors, especially when it comes to tomatoes, pepper, and eggplants, is easy, and allows you to select plant varieties that otherwise would not be available, and, wind up with healthier plants than you could otherwise obtain.

With just a few supplies....

I start seeds in 2 inch peat pots, then transplant them to the largest cowpots that I can find, which happen to be the 5 inch ones pictured here:

Product Description

$.96 per pot. A Large CowPot for starting plants that will need to remain in the pot longer. You can start a wide variety of seeds in these CowPots early in the season and when the conditions are best for your plant, just put the pot and the plant into the ground. The thick walls of this manure based pot will degrade adding organic material to the soil and allow the roots of your plants to grow uninhibited.

Starting your vegetable seeds in this CowPot will also allow the plant to grow and establish itself so transplanting will be much easier. The plant will transplant into your garden with ease as there will be no need to disturb the roots allowing your vegetables to grow freely and give you the fruits of your labor fast!

The soil I use for starting seeds in the 2 inch peat pots is available from Gardner's Supply Company:

Organic Germinating Mix

This 100% Organic Germinating Mix is the gold standard for starting plants from seed. Sphagnum peat and perlite give it a fine texture and superior moisture-holding characteristics. The addition of compost, protein meal and trace minerals puts this organic seedstarting mix in a whole new league: faster growth, heftier root systems, and beefier plants.

And here is a photo of the transplant mix, also available from Gardener's Supply Company:

Potting Soil for Transplants (pictured above)

When seedlings outgrow their original 2 inch peat pots, I re-pot them into the 5 inch cowposts using this Transplant Mix, which contains sphagnum peat, perlite and vermiculite, and has a coarser texture than Seedstarting Mix.

Indoor Lighting System: I have 2 of these for growing plants indoors:

Jump Start Grow Light System - 4 Ft. (Stand, Fixture & Tube)      SKU: JSV4  
Suggested Retail: $79.95  (about $55 on Amazon.com)
Ideal for seedlings, cuttings, flowers and house plants.
Grow seedlings faster with 15-20% more lumens
Simple toggle clamp for easy lamp height adjustment
Super easy assembly
Internal reflective finish directs more light to plants
When germinating seeds, the fixture can be kept just inches away from the seeds.  After sprouting, keep the fixture 3-6" away from the plant canopy.