by Doreen Mayers

Created on: January 04, 2010   Last Updated: January 07, 2010

HOW TO START SEEDLING INDOORS.

Seedlings should be started indoors six weeks prior to planting outdoors. Seedlings need to be in a warm well lit area preferably sunlight shining through an window. Seeds needs warmth, moisture and at least 14 hours of consistent light in order to grow. Seedlings are best grown in Burpee's seed starter which comes with a watering tray, a mat and the planting tray. This tray you never have to water daily and the plants receive the water from the roots. The tray keeps moisture without plants getting soggy. Halogen lights are especially good for growing plants indoor or they are various plants lights on the market that you can buy to grow plants indoor. Seedlings must have light in order to grow into health plants.

Seedling needs warmth to grow indoors, where you are start you seedlings must be at least 70 degrees, warmth produces a quicker growth in plants, that is why plants grow faster in the summer months that they would in the winter. They need lot of attention growing indoors. If they are not receiving sufficient light the growth will be slower than in a well lit area of the room. if you are starting your seedlings in a room with filtered light you must improve your lighting by bringing in lamps that will produce enough light to produce the growth of these plants. Plants get the color of its leaves from the sunlight.

Watering keeps the seed moist and they moisture cause the hard dry shells on the seeds to open quickly so that the plant will begin it growth. Without these three ingredients of water, light, and warm the seedlings will take longer to grow and when they do they will not produce a healthy plant.  

Before transferring a plant to the outdoors, it must be put outdoors for a few hours a day to get used the the changed of temperature and then return to its original place indoors.When planting seedlings for the Spring and you live in a cities where the temperature goes below freezing seedlings should be started indoors at least by Mid April and in 6 weeks the seedlings would have grown large enough to be transferred to the outdoors by June . You must get to know which planting zone you live in and when it is best for you to start your seedlings indoors to get ready for Spring planting outdoors.

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