Who has a good set up for seed starting?

[WildOlive]

We don't have any really good windows for starting seeds in our house, especially now that there is a toddler who will just go around dumping them if he can reach them.

Has anyone successfully rigged anything up with grow lights? I have a big wire shelf that is currently holding fabric, but I'm thinking I could put it in a room where Isaiah has no access, and wire shop lights to the bottom of each shelf to shine on the shelf below. Would that work? I think the main thing would be to make the lights adjustable so I could keep them close to the seedlings, and move them higher as needed.

[Macky]

That would absolutely work... I know because that's my setup. I've got some pics here already somewhere (basement is a mess right now). :)

The adjustability is already there since a basic florescent shop fixture already comes with chains to hang it from. Make sure to buy one that holds two bulbs – or more if you can (you can get four-bulb fixtures, I found out after I bought mine). You can buy four-foot grow bulbs for the basic fixtures, but they're a little more expensive. If you need to be frugal, install one ordinary cool white bulb and one warm white in each two-bulb fixture; they say it better simulates sunlight than just one or the other if you can't get the full-spectrum bulbs (I simply couldn't find any locally my first year). They also say you should start with brand new bulbs each season, but I can't afford that.

I bought a 5-shelf unit – wire shelves like you're talking about. I think height is roughly 7 feet. For practical use, though, you only need 4 of the shelves (to hang 3 fixtures) because if you have the shelves any closer together, there's just not room when the plants are bigger. I lent my fifth shelf to hubby for his rack of servers at work.

... Aaaaand that's my time. Gotta get a kiddo ready for school. BBL! (Promised to come back to another gardening thread, too. Here's hoping DD2 has a good nap this morning! :))

[WildOlive]

I would love to see your set up. :yes

My shelves are not adjustable, do you think that will matter? I think they're spaced far enough apart to work, though. :think

[Blue Savannah]

We did this (http://doorgarden.com/02/starting-seeds-indoors-under-lights) last year. :)

[Macky]

It doesn't matter if the shelves are adjustable as long as the lights are, which they will be if you buy the type that hangs from a chain. My shelf unit looks exactly like this one, less one shelf:
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y168/Macky77/511LzZX32XL.jpg
If I recall, it was from Costco and cost roughly $80 CDN. The shelves can be moved, but it's super tight and very difficult, so once the lights are installed, I would never even try it. There are hooks that come with the florescent lights that let you hook the chain onto the middle (lengthwise) shelf brace above. Raise the lights as the plants grow by hooking onto a different chain link.

If you're plugging in to a typical outlet that's low to the floor, the cord for the very top ballast likely won't reach it without an extension. What I did was buy a 6-outlet power bar and strap it really securely to one of the legs of the shelving unit at a comfortable height for the top ballast's cord to reach when it's at it's highest possible adjustment. The rest should reach just fine. The power par is then plugged into a timer which is plugged into the wall. The cords are all neatly strapped to the same leg as the power bar, in such a way that they still have full range of height adjustment. Kind of hard to explain or even picture, but you'll get what I mean if you do it. The other three outlets on the power bar can be for heating mats, but then you'd have to do away with the timer... or have two power bars strapped to the shelf leg – one on a timer and one not.

Instead of heating mats, I carefully balance newly-seeded plastic pots on top of the ballast itself, in a tray so we're not mixing water and electricity, of course! They don't get very hot, just warm enough for sprouting seeds. When spouts appear, they go under the light they were sitting on. Handy dandy.

I've had the best luck growing cool, so that's why my setup is in the basement. I also run a light fan (oscillating) on them right from the start, which helps them grow much sturdier.

Have searched all over for the pics and can't find them. Seriously, it's too much of a mess down there to take a photo right now, so I hope the description is good enough. :) Good luck... grow lights are SO worth it!

[WildOlive]

Super helpful, thank you!! I have the exact same shelf.

[lizzyd]

We have a grow light bought from a specialty place... it was kinda expensive, over $100 IIRC. My husband handles the seedlings for the most part so he manages those details. We keep our light under the basement stairs and adjust it upwards as the seedlings grow. This is our laundry/utility room so we can easily shut and lock the door to keep kids and pets out. We don't use shelving, only one layer of plants.

Our grow light investment has been worth it, the plants do very well under it. One year we started tomatoes pretty early and had tons of fruit ready to go in May. It was fun to eat tomatoes so early in the season.

[KCMartha]

NO time to read but I will BBL.

[KCMartha]

Okay, I really like the suggestions here and in the link. I am probably going to buy a seed starting package that includes two flats, two domes, two 72 cell inserts, soil, and a large heating mat. Plus the lights set up over them on a timer and hopefully a fan.

I hoping to do this all in my basement as it is the only available spot I have. It is pretty warm there (not sure the exact temp). I am thinking I should keep them on the heat mat to make sure they stay warmer. Is that a bad idea? Do you take the inserts out of the dome once they germinate?

Thanks for your help! I'm excited for getting this all going.

[WildOlive]

If I run a small space heater near my seed set up, could I get away without buying the mats? I'm trying hard not to spend money we don't have to spend, and I'm hoping I can get away with buying only the lights, seeds, and growing medium.

Does anyone use recycled containers instead of the little 6-pack thingys?

[lizzyd]

If the space is heated I don't think you need heat mats or space heaters. Our space is in an unfinished room in the basement, so it's slightly chilly compared to the rest of the house but this poses no problem.

We use mostly recycled containers. I save containers from when I buy flowers etc.

[Macky]

... I am probably going to buy a seed starting package that includes two flats, two domes, two 72 cell inserts, soil, and a large heating mat. Plus the lights set up over them on a timer and hopefully a fan.

I hoping to do this all in my basement as it is the only available spot I have. It is pretty warm there (not sure the exact temp). I am thinking I should keep them on the heat mat to make sure they stay warmer. Is that a bad idea? Do you take the inserts out of the dome once they germinate?

Those seed-starting kits cost more than you need to spend. Find a garden supply store or greenhouse that sells all the components separately – you'll save money and get better results. Buy two plastic flats (the bottom tray, make sure they don't have holes, some do), two clear domes and a small bag of soil-free starter medium (usually a combination of peat moss and pearlite/vermiculite). Buy cell packs if you like or use your own small containers. When starting seeds, all that matters about the containers is that there are drainage holes in the bottom (you want to set them in water instead of watering from above, which promotes "damping off") and that they are shallow (less medium to keep warm, plus you'll be transplanting them into larger pots anyway at the true leaf stage).

I bought heating mats once and took them straight back. They didn't raise the soil temperature to the germination temp I wanted (I used a soil thermometer). I got far better results setting my flats on the ballasts or over heat vents in the floor (set four overturned pots around the vent and balance the flat on top).

If I run a small space heater near my seed set up, could I get away without buying the mats? I'm trying hard not to spend money we don't have to spend, and I'm hoping I can get away with buying only the lights, seeds, and growing medium.

Does anyone use recycled containers instead of the little 6-pack thingys?

Space heaters heat the air, not generally the soil (though I haven't tried it, I'm just thinking how cool the soil still is in the spring even when the air is lovely and warm); I'm not sure you'd get as good a result as you would using a bottom source for the heat, one that is right against the container. Worth a try if you're up for an experiment. If I can use a heat source that's already running anyway, though – like my light ballasts or forced-air furnace – why draw power I don't need to, kwim.

I only use cell packs because they make the best use of flat space and I'm starting a LOT of plants. If space isn't a concern for you, use anything you like! :) Just make sure you cut drainage holes. When you transplant the seedlings into larger recycled containers, stay away from round ones if you can... they tend to train the roots around in a spiral and if they're left in there long enough, they can choke themselves. Use them if that's what you have, but get the plants out of there if you're having to hold them longer than you thought (bad weather when you planned to plant out, etc.). It's quite easy to slide the whole root ball out of a plastic pot and take a look at it without damaging anything. This is one of the primary reasons I use the plastic over anything like coir or peat pots, which have to be ripped off to check the roots. You can wash and reuse plastic to save money. Also, despite the claims, I've seen professional growing trials that reveal that those "degradable" growing containers don't actually break down until long after the roots have been stunted (same results with peat pellets that are surrounded by a thin mesh). I steer clear of them all. If you're gentle, you can slide a root ball out of a plastic container and do far less damage than ripping off the sides of a peat pot.

Yes, as soon as you get sprouts, get them out from under the dome. It's too humid and you risk problems with damping off.