home garden | starter permaculture

So I’ll be the first to admit that I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m fully shooting from the hip on most of my endeavors as far as gardening is concerned and because of that, I fully expect to make lots of mistakes. To try and minimize my losses though, I’m hitching my bets as much as possible. I’ll be using at least three different techniques to start my seeds this season with hopes that at least one will work well.

seed starting tray

I purchased a coconut husk seed starting tray from Plantation Garden Centre (very nice people, please support them if you need anything) in the NW of Calgary, and yesterday I used the whole thing to plant basil, thyme, lavender, 4 types of tomatoes, parsley and cilantro. I’d love to hear comments from you on whether this was a good move or not.

I also purchased a grow light from a local hydroponics store called Quick Grow (also very nice people and really helpful), and I figured out that under my desk is the perfect spot to start seeds. The light will sits just above the tray because it’s mounted under the drawers. I loved this idea because it’s not in the way at all!

Picture below: Planting seeds

After mounting the light, I put the seed tray under there.

Picture below: Mounting brackets

Picture below: Under my desk where it’s completely out of the way.

Picture below: Under the light

pots and soil

My second technique to starting seeds will be to use old fashioned organic potting soil. I purchased some soil from Plantation Garden Centre, and I’ll probably be using old yogurt containers and whatnot to house the soil and seeds. I’ve also heard of using newspaper folded into a cup, egg shells (which seems like an awesome idea), toilet paper rolls, etc. I don’t really care, but I’ll be starting some seeds in soil also.

hydroponic media

My third technique will be to start seeds in this weird seed starting media I got at Quick Grow. It’s fluffy and I have no idea how it works. These seeds will not be going into the garden. Instead they’ll be going into a window farm that I’m building.