THE UNH Cooperative Extension EDUCATION CENTER and INFO LINE provides practical solutions to everyday questions for the citizens of New Hampshire. The center is staffed by professionals and intensively trained volunteers who are available to answer your questions about:

and more...

UNH Cooperative Extension invites you to apply to the Fall 2010 Master Gardener Class. Classes are on Thursdays, 9-4, September 9-December 9, 2010 at the Unitarian Universalist Church, Concord, NH.

The application deadine is 08/05/10

Q: What is the proper time to start seeds indoors?

A. It depends on what seeds you want to plant. You need to work backwards from when it will be safe to transplant a particular plant outside. Most flower, vegetable and herb varieties need a month to six weeks' head start, though a few require longer. Check the information on seed packets or seed-catalogue descriptions. They generally tell you when to sow seeds indoors and when it's safe to plant outside. Most annual flowers and hardy vegetables such as onions and cabbage-family crops can be transplanted into the garden in mid-May, but frost-sensitive, warm-season plants but it is better to transplant most vegetables in late May or early June.

Start your seed in soilless seed-starter mix, following planting directions on your seed packets. Setting seedling containers on a plant heating pad will aid germination. Covering the seeds with a plastic wrap will help keep them moist and eliminate the need for daily watering. However, make sure that air can circulate. Once the seeds have germinated, remove the plastic covering and place your seedlings under fluorescent lights (preferably full-spectrum light bulbs) where they get about 10 hours of light each day. When seedlings have developed two sets of leaves, you can transplant them into potting soil. Maintain temperatures at 65 to 70 degrees during the day. Keep the planting soil damp, but not soggy.

A week or 10 days so before transplanting your plants outside, harden them of by setting them out in a sheltered place during the day. Gradually increase the amount of time they spend outside, and move them gradually to less sheltered locations, until they can withstand outdoor conditions and full sun all day. Carefully monitor their soil-moisture content during the hardening-off process; plants lose water much more rapidly outdoors in the sun and wind.

Got questions? UNH Cooperative Extension's Education Center & InfoLine offers practical help finding answers for your lawn and garden questions. Call toll free at 1-877-398-4769, M-F, 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m., or e-mail us at answers@unh.edu