Germination...

This year I am using these Rapid Rooter cubes by General Hydroponics of which I have had experience with.  Other good alternatives are Jiffy Pellets and my all time favorite Light Warrior (we will talk about this again later).


Basically what you want to do is get whatever seed starting medium you can afford and take your time with prep.  You want to soak pellets or cubes for at least 30 minutes to guarantee water uptake. TIP- use around 80 degree water for this as it helps create a good core temperature for the seeds.

Since I am a sucker for freebies I wanted to post this pic.  Got this from my local hydro shop All Seasons as a gift and I am very happy with the quick results.  Keep in mind that over feeding and over fertilization are common mistakes for the novice gardener so I would not recommend any feed until the seeds have germinated.  However, since I was starting in Rapid Rooters I used some Thrive Alive in my soaking solution in order to give them a little boost.

After soaking you want to place cubes/pellets/seed started into small seed flats with a drain pan underneath.  These can be found at any good nursery or garden supply on the cheap.  This system is under $8 with the super large humidity dome I got with it (not necessary).