How-to: Seed-Starting Set-Up

Our first garden was a total stroke of luck. We were living in a 4th floor apartment with no place for even a house plant when I decided I needed some dirt. I started tomato seedlings in an egg carton on our windowsill that the cat kept flipping over. Which was fine, actually, because I didn't have a clue as to where they would grow up. By accident a few days later, I found someone on Craigslist that wanted someone to "farm" their backyard, and our love of gardening was born.

Since that first year, our seed-starting set up has gotten a little more mature, and a lot easier to manage. Lots of guides are out there on how to start seeds, but Mr. Bottled and I are super happy with our set up: it works great for us, it's inexpensive and can be used multiple times a season, and it can also be taken apart and hidden in a closet when not in season. Here's what it consists of, from the top down:

1. Shop lights.
I got this at the local salvage store (community forklift) for about $5. I think is spent $9 on bulbs at the home depot. Don't be tricked into buying expensive "grow" lights for seed starting. Regular, cool florescent bulbs will work just fine. (this $14 investment is really the most important to keep your seedlings from being to leggy).

2. Light timer.
This makes life so much easier. Once your seeds sprout, they need their lights on about 16 hours a day. Get it on clearance after Christmas. About $4.
Save money: remember to plug your lights in every morning and unplug them every night.

3. Seed Starting Trays
These are optional; you can start seeds in just about anything. But start them seperatly, 3 seeds to a container, or they'll be a nightmare to transplant. Cover your container with clear plastic for a greenhouse effect. We've used plastic wrap and yogurt cups but they were a pain to deal with last year, so I splurged about bought the jiffy trays with cups. $5.50 each.
I'm already convinced the $11 bucks I spent on 2 was worth it, but save money by reusing plastic wrap and plastic baggies and cover yogurt cups or other containers with them. K-cups for those office coffee makers might also be a good option. You can also DIY a seed starting tray from egg cartons. (For another post).

4. Dirt. or um, "growing medium".
You'll need something to plant the seeds in. You can use an all-purpose houseplant soil, soil from outside that's been sterilized (to get rid of any bugs and fungus living in it, put it in the oven at 180 for 2 hours), or an honest-to-goodness soilless seed starting mix. This can vary from $0 - $10. Our bag, purchased last year was somewhere around $3.

5. Bookshelves with stuff on top.
Ours are salvaged from broken shelves that wouldn't support books anymore. I cut one in half and screwed in the shelves for extra support. I'm sure you can find bookshelves or tables on freecycle or craigslist. Or just use old wood and set it on stuff you have laying around. $0.
Stuff on top: Boxes to lift the seed trays closer to the light, whatever you have will be just fine, we've got gift boxes and old books. (also $0).

6. Spray Bottle.
Misting these daily is key to success. $1, at someplace like target, ikea or a hardware store.
You can also poke little holes in a 2 soda or water bottle. Just be sure that what you use to water doesn't flood your seeds out of their containers.

And that's it!! Ours was about a $40 investment, you can easily do it for $20. Check with your local extension service for more help, or check out this guide from Organic Gardening. I happen to love this one simply because it advises that you "pet" your seedlings once they arrive. Which will happen very soon.

Hooray!