5 Fantastic Reasons to Start Seeds for Your Garden

By the time late winter hits we gardeners are starting to feel the magnetic pull of the garden deep in our bones. If you live in a cold climate like I do, sometimes your garden is still hidden under the snow even though your heart and body are ready to get back out and sink your hands into the soil again.

A gardener friend said to me recently, “I’m starting to get antsy.” Yeah, me too. And that’s exactly why seed starting is the perfect antidote to winter restlessness.

If you don’t currently start your own seeds at home, let me try to convince you why you should do it this year by sharing these fantastic reasons to start seeds indoors.

5 Fantastic Reasons to Start Seeds Indoors

#1: Start the gardening season early.

As we talked about above, it’s hard not to feel impatient to get back into the garden well before spring actually arrives. Starting your own seeds “tricks” you into thinking that winter’s over and spring is here. You get to play with soil, seeds, and eventually plants.

Just because it’s indoors doesn’t mean it’s not gardening!

#2: Grow unique varieties.

When I teach and write about the colorful vegetables I grow in my garden each year, the most common question I’m asked is “Where do you find these plants?” Unfortunately, local nurseries and markets don’t always carry the most unique seedlings. I hardly ever see most of the varieties I start from seed for sale in my local area.

Growing your own seedlings allows you to experiment with new and fun varieties and ensures that you’ll always have your favorites on hand. Check out my list of colorful and unique veggies to try this year.

***Timing, lighting, and soil are the three most important factors in your seed starting success. Luckily, I created a how-to video series covering these critical topics and more. ***

I grew this amazing Turkish Orange Eggplant one year as a fun experiment!

#3: Save money.

If you have a big garden and plant a lot of seedlings you’ll likely save a lot of money by growing your own plants at home. In my garden, I plant about 35 pepper plants. If I were to buy them at $2 a pop that would be $70 just for peppers!

#4: Try new vegetables and flowers.

Not only can you grow more interesting varieties of your favorite vegetables and flowers when you start your own seeds, but you can also try completely new vegetables. For example, last year I tried growing quinoa, which I started from seed, and a few years ago I grew celery.

Experimenting with new vegetables, herbs, and flowers keeps gardening fresh and exciting and ensures that you don’t fall into a rut by planting the same exact things every single season.

#5: Learn a new skill. 

Figuring out how to grow your own plants at home adds another tool to your gardening tool belt and an additional dimension to the gardening experience. And the great thing is once you get over the hump of learning the basics and get a year or two of practice, starting seeds is an easily replicable process year after year. Here are my five recommended seeds to start with if you’re a newbie.

I hope a few of these reasons to start seeds indoors has sparked your interest and led you to consider trying it out this year. Don’t be intimidated by the process, it’s a lot of fun! Take a chance this year and delve into this exciting part of the garden experience. You won’t regret it!