Gardening 101: How to Sprout a Seed

Launch a stealth attack on winter by sprouting seeds indoors (to get a start on your edible garden). It’s simpler than you may think.

Photography by John Merkl for Gardenista.

Keep It Simple

Find a Sunny Spot

Be Patient

Add Layers

Keep Them Moist

Water the seed pots daily, to keep them moist. But don’t flood them. The  soil should look dark and moist, but you should never let water pool on the surface.

The first two leaves to sprout will look undifferentiated. A few days later, a third leaf–a true leaf–will appear, displaying characteristics of the plant. At this point, you can thin seedlings, removing all but one from each pot.

You can transplant seedlings to larger pots after their true leaves appear. Or you can transplant them into the garden next spring after the last frost date; if you started your seeds in biodegradable newspaper pots, you can plant the pots directly in the garden.

Newspaper Pots How-To

Are you a novice gardener? See more of our Gardening 101 posts, including How to Water an Air Plant and How to Plant a Bulb.