Successful spring harvest with these 5 seed starter tips

Lettuce Seeds Started in January - Photo by RY

These seed starter tips for a successful spring harvest will help to get you on your way to a thriving garden full of abundant crops from late spring through the summer growing season. At this time of year, there are plenty of seeds to sow, from cut flowers to salads and vegetables. Gardens will soon be abundant with plants as the weather begins to warm up and the days start getting lighter for longer. To begin with, though, it all starts with the seeds. These tips will ensure you get off to a good start for a spring harvest. 

  1. What to sow seeds in 
  2. What seeds to sow now 
  3. Water requirements for seeds 
  4. After germination steps
  5. Extra tips for seed sowing 

1. What to sow seeds in 

Seeds can be sown in many different types of pots - from seed trays and modules to coir pellets, small pots and recycled food containers, cardboard toilet roll centres, or you can even make your own out of newspaper. Generally, smaller seeds can be scattered thinly into seed trays, and larger seeds can be sown individually in modules or pairs in small pots. Always read the seed packet instructions to guide you. Ideally, use seed compost for sowing or potting compost mixed with perlite. 

2. What seeds to sow now 

Sow broad beans for a spring harvest

In the West of Ireland there's very little you can sow directly outside at this time of year, other than broad beans. Indoors though, this is the perfect time to get onion seeds started off in modular trays, some lettuce and salad crops can be started off in seed trays now and if you have a heated propagator or heat mat, this month is a good time to start off those heat loving plants that require a long season like chilies, sweet peppers, tomatoes and aubergines. If you are starting off seeds like tomatoes now though, be sure you have enough space indoors where there is heat for the next few months. You can grow these on until the conditions are suitable to transfer them outside or preferably into an unheated greenhouse or tunnel, which is usually around May/June.   

[On a side note - as well as being the web administrator for Ardcarne Garden Centre, whilst I'm no expert, I do try to grow as many vegetables as I can throughout the year. Only this week I was sowing onions, tomatoes and chillies and I took these photos above - I'll keep you posted as these progress. The heated propagator to the far left is a 'Super 7' heated windowsill propagator, which has served me well for the past 9 years and I highly recommend it. I believe these are currently on order and should be arriving in store and online soon. The onions are sown in the modular trays and most of that you see in the foreground is sitting on a heat mat, including a few pots of aubergine seedlings that were sown and germinated last month. There's also a tray of leggy lettuce seeds which I'll be potting on this weekend.

To the right you can see some broad beans that I had sown last month just using toilet roll tubes, placed in mushroom boxes (be sure to add drainage holes) and some sweet peas in long pots that are already on their way (I was pinching the tips out of the sweet peas yesterday so that they will branch out and thicken up for later in the season). You can continue to sow broad beans and sweet peas from now until the end of March/April.]

3. Water requirements for seeds 

The balance of water is essential for seeds. Too much and they will die off; too little and they won’t grow at all. Try to keep the compost moist but not overwatered. Ensure they have light, good airflow, and the right germination temperature. The seed packet instructions will guide you. 

4. After germination steps 

Seed germination

After your seeds germinate, wait until they are large enough to handle, and if they need to be pricked out, remove the weakest seedlings, leaving space for the strongest to grow. Eventually, they will need to be potted up, hardened off and planted outside when all risk of frosts has passed. 

5. Extra tips for seed sowing 

Ensure your seeds are sown at the correct depth. For example, lettuce seeds can be sprinkled on the soil with a fine layer of compost. Squash seeds can be gently pushed into the ground about 2cm deep. Using a misting spray can be helpful to ensure the water doesn’t wash all the seeds to one end of the tray or water too much. Heated propagators can be used to start seeds off early, and some, such as peas, can be sprouted before even sowing on a damp kitchen roll.

You can get your seeds off to a good start with our seed-sowing packs, accessories and compost from in store. 

What's more, our resident 'Grow Your Own' expert, Catherine McGuire will also be running an event detailing how to grow your own fruit and produce your own compost at home on Saturday 25th February. The course cost is only €10, payable at the time of booking and will run from 11am to Midday at our garden centre in Boyle so be sure to book your place on (071) 9667091 if you wish to attend.