Growing from seeds: Choose a container
It’s also important to choose a container that best fits your needs. If you want to start seedlings indoors, it’s best to select a planter that fits on your windowsill or under grow lights. If you want to germinate your seeds outdoors, opt for something that can be easily moved around the garden or porch.
When selecting a container for growing seeds, make sure you have adequate space for the plant once it’s fully grown. You may need larger pots if you plan on leaving seedlings indoors before transplanting them outside once they are established.
Look for containers made of materials such as plastic, wood, ceramic and metal—but avoid those made from materials that can leach substances harmful to plants over time (such as galvanized metal).
Material
Seed starters come in many materials, but some are better than others for starting seeds.
- Plastic is inexpensive and lightweight, and it is durable enough to last several seasons. However, plastic containers do not breathe well, so you will need to take extra care to ensure that your seedlings do not become waterlogged.
- Metal conducts heat well and will help warm up the soil quickly during the cool early spring days. However, metal containers are prone to rusting.
- Wood breathes better than plastic or metal containers and can wick away excess moisture from the soil, which reduces disease problems in your seedlings. However, wood containers need a protective coating (such as linseed oil) applied each year to prevent them from deteriorating over time.
- Ceramic is durable enough to last for years of service but has poor insulative properties and tends to be heavy due to its weight when wet (soil). Also, ceramic containers can be expensive compared with other materials such as plastic or wood.
Drain holes
Next, drill holes in the bottom and all over the sides of your container. Why? Drainage! A few random holes in the bottom just won’t cut it. Your plants’ roots need to be able to breathe, and that won’t happen if they soak in water (puddles and poor drainage). Also, don’t place containers directly onto a hard surface like concrete or tile; you’ll compromise drainage even more and risk root rot. Instead, use pot feet or other raised platforms to elevate your pots a bit from their surfaces.
You can also line your container with a layer of gravel at the bottom for additional drainage—it’s especially helpful for smaller pots. Just don’t fill an entire pot with gravel; no plant wants to live on top of that stuff.
Stackability (if you are growing multiple plants)
If you’re growing more than one plant, you want the plants to be easily stackable. If they are too big, there will be no extra space for a second or third plant. If they are too small, the plants will not have enough room to grow. For example, if you are planting tomatoes or another plant that is likely to grow tall, choose a container that is tall and thin rather than wide and round.
Size (large or small enough to fit the space you have available)
The size of your container affects things like how much soil it can hold, how heavy it is, and how many plants you can fit.
This is important. You will want to be able to find a spot for your container that has enough space for your plants to grow, but that won’t take up the whole yard. The same thing goes for finding a spot inside if you are trying to grow plants in winter or bad weather.
If the container is too small, the plant will not have room for its roots, which might lead to stunted growth or even prevent the plant from growing altogether. There are certain types of plants that don’t need much space though, and they can thrive with smaller containers.
Past use of the container (i.e., if it previously contained toxic chemicals)
It may seem like containers are containers, but past use of the container is important. If the container previously contained toxic chemicals, pesticides, fertilizer or fungicides it could have a negative impact on the plants.
Therefore, to avoid a potential disaster in your garden, be very careful about what you plant your seeds in. If you’re not sure about a container’s history of use and care for it with caution!
There are many different kinds of containers you can use, but remember size and drainage matter.
When choosing a container, you should think about how much space your plants need to grow. For example, if you are growing a tomato plant, you would want to choose a container that can hold at least five gallons of soil. If you are growing smaller plants such as lettuce or herbs, then you can use containers as small as one gallon.
You also need to make sure the container has drainage holes in the bottom so that excess water can drain out rather than drowning your plants. The container should be light enough that it’s easy for you to move around and clean when it needs to be washed out before planting with new seeds. You could even use old milk jugs or soda bottles as long as they have drainage holes and are cleaned well before using them again.