The Biggest Mistake You Can Make When Starting Seeds Indoors

If you're serious about gardening, you've surely tried your hand at starting seeds indoors. Almanac lists some of the biggest benefits of starting your seeds inside. By starting your seeds inside, you'll get to start your garden earlier, which could lead to a better harvest down the line. You will be able to grow more types of plants if you start them from seeds. Also, if you don't start your plants from seed, you'll have to get "transplant" or "starter" plants from a plant nursery. These plants may not be the best quality or grow as well as one you start from seeds yourself. And lastly, one of the biggest benefits is that seeds are less expensive than plants from a plant nursery. Seeds can also be even cheaper when bought in bulk.

However, if you're thinking about starting your garden indoors from seeds, there are some mistakes you'll want to be sure you avoid.

The biggest mistake to avoid is sowing the seeds at the wrong time. Almanac says that planting seeds at the right time is crucial because plants most likely won't live if they are grown too early or too late. If grown too early, the plants could outgrow their indoor containers. If grown too late, you may find yourself at the end of the growing season with never fully matured plants.

Generally, the best time to plant your seeds inside is in late winter, about two months before the last predicted frost, although some plants have to be grown even earlier. Because of this, it's best to read your specific seed package to know the exact time to plant your seeds indoors. 

According to Get Busy Gardening, If you want to grow plants from seeds every year, it's a good idea to keep a log of when each plant is started and how well they do throughout the growing season. This will help you make adjustments for better plant growth in the future.

Along with planting at the wrong time, gardeners often make many other mistakes. BioAdvanced lists many common mistakes. The first is that many people get excited and order too many seeds. To keep from doing this, be realistic about the number of seeds you could actually grow. 

Another common mistake is planting the seeds too deep. The back of your package will have details about how deep to plant the seeds. Watering your plants can also bring its fair share of challenges. You want the soil to be damp but not wet.

You'll also want to keep your plants at the correct temperature. Seedlings need to be warm to grow. If you suspect your plants aren't getting enough heat, placing them on a waterproof heating pad could help. Almanac also warns that relying on sunlight from a windowsill will not do. This is because the light will come in at an angle, which will cause your plants to grow slanted. To avoid this, you should purchase a grow light for your plants.