I do a lot of talking about the benefits of starting vegetables from seed. It’s cheap. It’s renewable. It’s the best way to guarantee your plants are organic and GMO free. Starting your organic garden from seed isn’t for everyone, though. Some people have better success with seedlings than seeds. That’s OK. Seeds aren’t the only way to start an organic garden. So, if you do better with seedlings than seeds, don’t feel like you’re less of a gardener.
Seed starting success isn’t always about skill.
There are a wide range of factors that determine success. Sometimes seed sprouting failures seem to happen for no reason whatsoever. Some people are just plain unlucky at starting veggies from seeds. Some have sporadic success. That is, some seeds they start grow very well, some do moderately well and others fail altogether. I’ve seen awesome gardeners who can’t start seeds to save their life. So, if you have no luck starting seeds, don’t be too hard on yourself. Just buy the plants.
Don’t panic when seeds fail to sprout.
Remember, this isn’t the dark ages. Seed supplies are not limited. Seeds are inexpensive and readily available. Just try again with a different variety or brand. Heck, you might even have later success, using seeds from the same package. It happens. Once again, if it still doesn’t work, there’s no shame in using seedlings.
The seeds were doing great until….
Sometimes everything is going wonderfully and one little seedling starts turning yellow, drooping or taking on some other unhealthy characteristic. Before you know it, the whole bunch of them is at death’s door. You could be over-watering or using too much fertilizer. Then again, maybe you did everything right. Maybe it’s just a fussy batch of seeds. Not to worry.
Most modern greenhouses carry plenty of organic, GMO bulbs and plants now.
There’s no need to wait weeks when seeds fail.
More organic, GMO free seeds or plants are as close as your local greenhouse. You don’t have to order organics and heirlooms through the mail any more. If you live in or near a major city, buying non-GMO seeds gets easier all the time.
Seeds aren’t the only heirloom option any more.
It used to be that if you wanted heirloom crops, you had no choice but to start from seed. Now, those same greenhouses carry GMO free fruits, veggies and more in plant form. So, if you’re not so good at starting seeds, or you just plain don’t have the time, you can buy GMO free plants instead.
More from Jaipi:
Growing Onions Successfully From Seed
Do Roll Out Seed Mats Really Work?
Cheap Covers for Newly Transplanted Vegetables
