I recently put up a chat box on Instagram and got a lot of your indoor gardening questions.
I picked 10 of the most frequently asked, specifically about starting seeds indoors. Let’s go through and answer them today!
Seed Starting Questions
- Seed brands?
- Can you do a video of how you add the seeds to the pods? I just bought my first set
- How did you use your own seeds in the Lettuce Grow?
- What’s the difference between seeds? Can you use any seeds for hydroponics?
- How long do you keep seeds? I have trouble letting go 🤣
- What are indoor and low light vegetables we can grow?
- In what season should you be planting certain seeds? / Does the season have an effect on whether a specific vegetable will grow? Like it usually does [in soil]?
- Any tips for first timers to ensure seeds grow properly?
- When seeds are not sprouting at once, what do you do? Just wait till they germinate?
- Have you had success starting seeds in a DWC that already has full strength nutes?
Indoor Garden Seed Starting Q&A
Seed brands?
I buy all my seeds online, from heirloom seed companies.
The 3 companies I re-purchase from the most are:
I have a more in-depth list of reputable online seed companies in this article.
It goes into more detail about the pros + cons of each seed company and what specific types of seeds I like to buy from each place.
Heirloom seeds are seeds that have been passed down through generations, known for their unique flavor and are open pollinated.
These seeds will always grow ‘true to type’ with the same characteristics over time, which is helpful if you like to save seeds and want consistency.
I like that you can find fun, different varieties at those online seed companies compared to the vegetables you’d see at the grocery store (although those basic commercial varieties are available too).
Can you do a video of how you add the seeds to the pods? I just bought my first set
Yes! I previously made videos covering this here, here, here and here.
I also have a ‘Getting Started’ series on substack that goes more in-depth with step by step instructions and some additional tips!
How did you use your own seeds in the Lettuce Grow?
The Lettuce Grow Farmstand works best with transplants, or ‘young’ plants rather than seeds.
You can buy seedlings through the company (faster), or you can use your own seeds and grow seedlings (cheaper).
I like to grow all my Farmstand plants myself, because it gives me more flexibility over what I can plant. I start seeds outside the garden and then, when they’re about a month old, I transplant them in.
I wrote a guide here covering how to do this.
In what season should you be planting certain seeds? / Does the season have an effect on whether a specific vegetable will grow? Like it usually does [in soil]?
The beauty of indoor gardening is you can do it all year round :)
So there’s no right time or season to plant seeds. I usually do the bulk of my seed starting in January/ February, and continue to start seeds all year round as needed.
And typically around the holidays, I’ll pull everything out and do a garden clean + refresh, but you can keep your plants growing too.
How long do you keep seeds? I have trouble letting go 🤣
I still have my first seed order from 2018/2019, lol.
I find it difficult to throw things away too! Seeds can stay viable for years, even decades in some instances, so it’d be a waste to throw them out.
The germination rate does dramatically decrease after a year old though, so it’s best to use up seeds when they’re still fresh.
What’s the difference between seeds? Can you use any seeds for hydroponics?
You can use the same seeds for hydroponics that you would use for soil.
There’s not really a difference, although some seeds don’t like being soaked in water and will be slightly more difficult.
And some varieties will do better in an indoor garden than outdoors, and vice versa. You have to experiment a little to see!
What are indoor and low light vegetables we can grow?
So, to clarify indoor gardening doesn’t mean you need to grow low light vegetables.
The indoor gardens I use all have strong, full spectrum LED lights that mimic the sun.
The LED bulbs for gardening are different from regular LEDs and specially designed to have red, blue and white wavelengths that are necessary for plants.
I think some people think my indoor plants are only getting window light because I usually film when the LEDs are off (they’re very bright and distort the video colors).
Most home windows filter out light, so growing a plant on a sunny windowsill likely won’t be enough for the plant’s needs. You really need the LED lights.
But if you’re asking about vegetables with low light requirements, that would be lettuces and salad greens!
They can actually show signs of tip burn or leaf deficiencies with too much available light.
Any tips for first timers to ensure seeds grow properly?
The indoor garden does 95% of the work for you!
I have a video with some tips here.
But I share all my best tips in my ‘Getting Started’ series on substack :)
When seeds are not sprouting at once, what do you do? Just wait till they germinate?
Ha, it sounds like you’re impatient like me 😉
On the back of every seed packet, or in the seed description on the seed company website, they’ll list the average days to germination.
It’s different for every plant – lettuces for example, are very quick and sprout in 1-4 days.
Some plants are really slow – cilantro and chives can take up to 3 weeks to germinate.
Have you had success starting seeds in a DWC that already has full strength nutes?
Sure – you can add full strength nutrients at startup if you wish.
Seeds don’t need nutrients to germinate, so some people like to wait until the seeds have sprouted to start adding. Some sensitive seeds may experience nutrient burn if they experience full strength nutes too early.
But generally I think it’s fine to add the full strength nutrients right away if you want, or think you’ll forget later.
Every now and then, I’ll put up a Q&A box on IG stories. You can submit any questions then :)
I’ll also be opening up direct advice + more q&a’s to my paying substack members in the near future. Stay tuned!
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