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Many gardeners skip seed starting in favor of purchasing plants, often assuming the tools necessary for indoor sowing will be too expensive to make the project practical. However, you often can get by with substituting items you already have for those you’d need to buy.
For example, shop lights from the garage can take the place of grow lights, while produce boxes rescued from the trash can stand in for seed-starting trays. Of course, if you lack time or energy to do things the DIY way, you can purchase some of the highly rated and reasonably priced items listed here.
1. Seed Starting Tray With Cover
Seed-starting containers can vary from repurposed “clamshell” produce boxes to more professional options like the Gardzen 5-Set Garden Propagator Set. As with the Gardzen set, your trays need drainage holes. This set includes a transparent dome to keep seed-starting mix damp. (Another way to go is to use shallow flower pots capped with plastic wrap).
The Gardzen set’s main tray has optimal drainage, and the set includes a base tray to catch drained water. If you make a DIY setup, you’ll need a second container without drainage holes. One option is an unperforated flat or shallow dishpan, into which you can water your seeded containers from the bottom.
Get the Gardzen 5-Set Garden Propagator Set at Amazon for $19.99.
RELATED: All You Need to Know About Starting Seeds Indoors
2. Seed-Starting Mix
Soilless seed starting mix has a lighter texture than standard potting or garden soil, which new gardeners often make the mistake of using. Most importantly, seed-starting mix is sterile, which isn’t true of the aforementioned soils. That sterility helps prevent the damping off disease that frequently affects seedlings. Usually, seed-starting mix is composed mainly of peat moss or coir, such as Burpee Organic Coconut Coir Concentrated Seed Starting Mix, with perlite or vermiculite sometimes added.
Get the Burpee Organic Coconut Coir Concentrated Seed Starting Mix at Amazon for $12.25.
3. Spray Bottle
Although some gardeners like to mist the surface of their seed-starting flats with water, using a spray bottle such as the JohnBee 16-ounce spray bottles, moisture delivered in that way seldom penetrates far. For the best results, water your containers from the bottom first to get them thoroughly damp, allowing them to drain afterward to prevent sogginess. Save the spray bottle to use when the surface of the mix is just beginning to dry out.
Get a 2-pack of JohnBee 16-ounce Plastic Spray Bottles at Amazon for $7.96.
4. Grow Lights
Although it is possible to start seedlings on sunny windowsills, hanging LED grow lights, such as the Juhefa LED Grow Lights, above seed-starting trays for 12 to 16 hours per day generally works better. Hanging grow lights just a few inches above the plants prevents the seedlings from bending toward the window and getting “leggy,” or growing overly long stems. For seedlings, fluorescent or LED shop lights work almost as well as these full-spectrum lights.
Get the Juhefa LED Grow Lights at Amazon for $23.99.
5. Seedling Heat Mat
Normal indoor temperatures between 70 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit are warm enough to start most seeds. However, tropical plants and vegetables such as eggplant, peppers, and okra sprout more readily at temperatures above 75 degrees. For these you may want to purchase a seedling heat mat, such as the VIVOHOME Seedling Heat Mat. If you don’t want to go the heat-mat route, place your seed-starting containers in the warmest spot in your home, perhaps on a high shelf above a radiator or register.
Get the VIVOHOME 20W Waterproof Seedling Heat Mat on Amazon for $14.99.
6. Portable Fan
Circulating air in the room where you start seeds can reduce fungus on the plants and soil, and can strengthen the stems and limbs of young seedlings. A tower fan such as the Honeywell HYF260 Whole Room Tower Fan is a good option because it oscillates and will blow a gentle breeze over multiple shelves of plant starts; it also has an automatic shutoff and a remote control for ease of use. Running a fan also will get the new plants used to wind before you move them outdoors.
Get the Honeywell HYF260 Whole Room Tower Fan at Amazon for $56.88.
7. Plant Labels
When sowing seeds, you’ll need to label them to remember what you planted where. KINGLAKE’s Plant Nursery Garden Labels can be tucked into individual pots or cells and are not likely to be disturbed—that is, unless you have young children or cats, in which case you might opt for sticky labels that you can affix to plant containers. In either case, use a permanent marker to prevent the plant names and dates from being rubbed or washed off.
Get the KINGLAKE 4-Inch Plastic Plant Nursery Garden Labels (100 pieces) at Amazon for $4.69.
8. Seeds
Before purchasing from seed companies, check online reviews or curated lists from trustworthy sources (such as Dave’s Garden) to ensure sellers are well regarded by your fellow gardeners. Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, for example, scores high and offers both vegetable and flower seeds. Alternatively, you can save your own seeds from plants that aren’t hybrids and swap with other gardeners online to obtain more. Although some seeds never should be started indoors, plenty more will thrive if given that head start.
Get the Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Catalog for FREE
The prices listed here are accurate as of January 16, 2025.
