What a strange fucking timeline we’re in, guys. But I don’t need to tell you that. It’s taken a couple weeks, but I’m getting back into the groove of Springtime planning and planting. Now more than ever, I’m thinking about the connections between food sovereignty, community, and home gardening. And I want to talk about it all with you!

In this post, we’ll go over the basics of starting your seeds indoors on the cheap and with limited space. Next up, we’ll talk about prepping your outdoor soil for those early Spring seeds you can plant directly in the garden. But for now, let’s get started while staying inside.

Preparing Your Seed Starting Mix

I’m a big fan of these handy windowsill seed starting trays by Jiffy. They’re a cheap all-in-one solution for folks with limited indoor space, or for those who simply don’t want to mess with putting together a multi-part indoor setup. And right now, the less you need to purchase from different places, the better. They’re also very satisfying to prepare, as you just add water and watch the peat pellets plump up!

It’s important to keep in mind when starting seeds indoors that seed starting mix is not the same thing as outdoor gardening/potting soil that you might toss into your raised beds or containers. Whether you use dehydrated peat pellets, like in this Jiffy setup, or a separate bag of sterile seed starting soilless mix, make sure you’re using a medium meant just for starting seeds.

Choosing the Right Seeds

With community and pandemic conditions in mind, I chose to go the more practical route this year instead of experimenting so much. I’m focusing on Cherokee Purple tomato seeds I saved last fall, cilantro, and lemon balm for my indoor starts. I figure I can give away my extra seedlings if anyone wants them, and cilantro works with so many types of cuisine to share later on.

When deciding which seeds to start indoors, prioritize the following:

• Plants with long growing periods
• Plants which need to go outside only after the danger of frost has passed (for more on this, learn how to find out your frost dates)
• Plants which require some extra TLC and care to thrive once outside

Tomatoes are a pretty standard “start inside” kind of plant, while I’ve found that other veggies like cucumbers and bush beans do just as well being sown outside closer to the last frost date or a little later. If you have limited indoor growing space like I do, I’d recommend using your precious space for things like tomatoes, herbs, and possibly a flower or two.

You’ll probably see most seed packets say to start the seeds indoors either 4-6 weeks or 6-8 weeks before last frost, and so now’s a perfect time to get your picks going for a mid-late May planting season.

Care for Your Growing Seedlings

It’s important to keep the soil/starter mix moist in the early days to aid in germination. The Jiffy trays I use come with a plastic dome lid to create a greenhouse-type effect and trap moisture. However, you also don’t want your seedlings to mold and die off if the soil mix is too wet. Basically, just keep a close eye and check on them a couple times a day.

This year, I left my two trays on the bathroom floor near a heating vent to make sure the temperature was warm enough. Whatever works! Once you start to notice little spouts, remove the covering and move to a windowsill.

Keep your starts hydrated, and you should be on your way to healthy little plants while quarantined. If you’ve planted multiple seeds in each pot or pellet, remove the weaker and/or smaller sprouts. You’ll also need to upgrade your seedlings at some point to a bigger cup or pot later on in the process.

Lastly, you’ll eventually need to “harden off” your delicate indoor plants before they’re able to withstand the direct sunlight and outdoor conditions of the garden. But no need to worry about that just yet. We have a long Spring to come and the time to wait.