The 2024 garden season has officially started! I live in Zone 5B for planting, so March is when I start my seeds inside. Are you interested in growing seeds at home? Here is a cheap and easy way to do it.

Here is my 2023 garden if you want to check out my last garden. I started it from seed last year too, and I really recommend it if you want a big garden and don’t want to spend a lot of money.

What you need to start seeds inside

Below is the list of items that are necessary for planting seeds inside. I’ve added a hyperlink to the items I have bought.

• Seed starter trays ($24.25)
• Potting mix ($16)
• Your favorite garden seeds (Usually around $3 each)
  • You can order online, buy from a garden store, or grab some at Home Depot
• South facing window

Approximate total: $50

Buying seedlings at garden centers usually ends up being around $3 each. You would only need to grow 17 seedlings at home to breakeven. But, you can reuse these trays every year, so its basically generational wealth.

• Optional:
  • Plant labels
    • DON’T use popsicle sticks, the ink runs and they mold. Learn from me!
  • Grow light – here is a great option
    • Make sure you check the lumen amount on them, you need to make sure you have enough lumens for the square footage of plants.

You can also use a south-facing window to get the sunlight your plants need. I use all of our available south facing window space on our succulents and herbs that we are growing from seed. I am lucky to have a grow light, but by no means is it necessary. Use a window that gets good sunlight and give them time.

Why to start seeds inside

Starting seeds insides means you will get the most of your growing season. If you are from more Northern areas, your last frost day isn’t until end of May-June. Which means if you are going to direct sow your seeds, you couldn’t plant your seeds outside until your last frost date for your area.

For example, tomatoes take 60-100 day to grow from seed. If you started tomatoes outside on May 31st, you wouldn’t start getting producing tomatoes until August at the earliest. Tomatoes LOVE the heat, so they grow the best during warm months. If they start producing fruit on August 18th, they will only have about 1 month of warm temperatures to produce tomatoes.

You start seeds inside to maximize your plants production and give them the type of weather they enjoy. Some vegetables are cold weather vegetables and they won’t grow once it starts getting into the summer heat and some vegetables need the daily sunshine and heat to grow.

Moral of the story

Buy seedlings at the garden store if the ease is worth the price! BUT if you want to try growing seeds from home, you can do it for cheap and reuse a lot of the stuff you buy.

Also, making seedlings at home isn’t a guaranteed vegetable plant. Some seeds don’t sprout, some may stop growing, and in general your first year will come with a learning curve.

That being said, it is super fun and fulfilling to watch the lil baby seedlings grow every day, and then to get so many free veggies from them.

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