To Seed or Not To Seed: Indoor vs. Outdoor
Amid winter gardening, I find myself planning a lot of what’s to come for spring. Although spring might seem far off at this moment, starting seeds for your spring garden is right around the corner. When it comes to planting seeds, you can either plant directly in your garden or start seeds indoors. While you can seed many plants in either fashion, some crops are more rigid in their planting practices.
Seeding directly in the outdoor garden.
If you have the space to create optimal indoor growing conditions for your little seedlings, I highly recommend starting as many seeds indoors as you can. If you have a greenhouse available to you, you already have a great place to start crops. As for the rest of us, growing seeds indoors is not as simple as planting out a seed tray, putting it near a window, and misting it daily. No, it takes a little more planning than that. Seeds are delicate and need ideal conditions to germinate, therefore getting yourself a seed heating pad and some grow lights is an investment worth pursuing. Seeds need to stay a little on the warmer side and need consistent light to sprout, particularly in the winter. Once you have your seed starting area set up and ready to go, get seeding!
Young plants and seedlings growing in a small greenhouse.
Typically, each crop has plenty of growing information on the seed packet you purchased. You can also research more information if you want more specific growing guidelines on a crop you have never grown before. Despite all the information available through these avenues, I have outlined some essential rules for seeding indoors versus outdoors.
Gardener transplanting lettuce starts into the garden.
First, almost all root vegetables do not transplant well, so you should seed them directly in the garden. These root vegetables include carrots, beets, radishes, turnips, and parsnips. Since these crops grow underground, transferring them from a small container into the garden usually results in stunted growth and poor yield results. Stick to seeding them outdoors and save yourself the struggle of trying to transplant them.
A gardener pulling a large harvest-ready carrot.
Second, some vegetables are a lot more successful when seeded indoors and transplanted into the garden when ready. Vegetables such as tomatoes, cabbage, broccoli, squash, peppers, eggplant, and melons do quite well when either seeded indoors or transplanted from nursery starts. You can seed these plants directly in the garden as well, but I’ve noticed a greater success rate in starting these seeds indoors or in a greenhouse, so they have optimal conditions to germinate and develop their true-leaves. Plus, if you start them indoors, animals won’t eat up the young plants before they have a chance to grow!
Seedlings growing in trays, getting ready for transplanting.
Third, some crops require no ‘seeding’ at all. Rather than seeding these plants, you use bulbs or tubers to grow them instead. These plants include onions (see my blog post on planting onion bulbs here), garlic, potatoes, sunchokes, and shallots. Plant these crops outdoors only. For example, planting potatoes in the garden is a lot easier than you might think. I purchase full-grown potatoes from a nursery, cut them into quarters, let them dry in the sun for thirty minutes or so, then bury them at least six to eight inches under the fertile soil in my garden. Although you can start crops from grocery-bought vegetables, I would advise you to only plant crops (including potatoes and other bulbs) that are nursery-purchased to help deter any potential diseases.
Potatoes being planting in rows outdoors.
So, to seed or not to seed? It depends on the crop, variety, and the conditions that your home and garden provide. Remember, always read the seed packet, look up more information if you are unsure, and plant your crops on their ideal timeline to yield the best results. Happy seeding!