Have you started your seeds indoors yet?

For most people, it looks something like this: grab a bunch of little pots or seed-starting flats, fill with soil and seeds, water, and wait for the magic to happen.

This could mean starting (and storing) a half-dozen or more flats in front of a window or setting up a seed-starting station with shelves and grow lights to make sure you have enough seedlings to transplant.

But what if you just don't have the space inside your home? Or you're not sure how well those seeds will germinate since you found some wrinkly packets stuffed in the corner of your shed from who-knows-when?

That's why I personally love using the "baggie method" for starting seeds. It uses (cheap) materials you probably have in your house already + zero soil. With this method, you can start a hundred seeds or more in a space the size of a small window sill. (And that's not an exaggeration.)

​Here's my guide to starting tons of seeds in paper towels (or coffee filters) in less time!​

Another advantage to the baggie method is that it's an ideal way to start seeds like chili peppers, which require heat, consistent moisture, and long germination times (sometimes up to three weeks or more).

Ghost pepper seeds, for instance, can take up to four weeks to germinate, and this is pretty common for very hot peppers. But you can speed up germination for these types of seeds (and reduce the chances of them rotting before they sprout) simply by creating mini greenhouse environments with your baggies.

5 Must-Have Items in My Seed Starting Kit Read more

When to Sow Seeds vs. When to Transplant Seedlings Read more

How Much to Plant for a Year's Worth of Food Read more

You Can Transplant Hardy Plants Before the Last Frost in Spring—Here's How Read more

How to Plant a Strawberry Patch from Bare Roots Read more

An Easier Way to Grow Asparagus: Raised Bed Planting Read more

​For more traditional seed starting, I am absolutely loving these air-prune trays.​

They look like your typical 72-cell seed-starting flats, but their open-bottom design circulates more air around the roots to prevent seedlings from becoming root-bound. Air-prune trays produce very healthy seedlings with robust root systems that are easy to lift and transplant.

The concept is similar to the fabric root pouches I love so much (which you can see in action in my post here about growing indeterminate tomatoes in pots).

If you're in the market for new seed-starting trays, you'll want to give these a try. I also have the classic propagation trays and pots from this same company (you can see everything I use here) and can vouch that they produce the strongest trays I've ever used (still no cracking or warping after many years of garden abuse). All made in the USA too. 🇺🇸

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P.S. Start hundreds of seeds in a small space using the baggie method (you already have everything you need at home).

P.P.S. How many seeds from that variety germinated? When did they germinate, and when did the first true leaves appear? Which seedlings grew best and in which spot? My Ultimate Garden Diary can help you track all of this, and more!​