Sowing Seeds

It’s time, friend. Time to get our hands in soil. There’s something so soothing to me about working with soil. The smell, the texture, the idea of planting a seed that will create a plant with health benefits for your entire family. I’ve found that gardening improves my mood when I’m having a tough day and gives me a feeling of peacefulness and contentment. My hope for you is that you, too, will experience similar mental health benefits during this project. So let the soil sift through your fingers. Take the time to learn about what you’re growing. Enjoy and appreciate each step of the process.

Sowing Your Seeds – Step by Step     

1.  Mix your soil using my soil recipe in my first grow-along post in a large mixing bowl or pot and moisten it with water. It should be moist but not dripping wet or muddy.

2.  Fill your pots or seed flats with the soil. Give your pots a tap or two against the table to help the soil settle into the pot but do not press or pat it down with your hands.  

3.  Sow your seeds into the soil. You can use a pencil or chopstick (or simply your pinky finger) to make a small hole in the center of your pot or tray cell. Below are specific directions for sowing each variety in the Cedar House Living Herb Set:

Bee Balm. I recommend planting two seeds in each hole only about ¼ inch deep. Then cover the top with a very light layer of soil. Be patient with bee balm, as it can take anywhere from 10-30 days to germinate but will be well worth the wait in the end.

Calendula. I recommend planting one or two seeds in each hole about ½ inch deep and cover the hole with soil. They usually germinate in just 2-3 days on heat (6-9 days with no heat mat.)

Lemon Balm. To sow these seeds, simple sprinkle them evening across your pot. I recommend pots or other preferred type of container rather than a seed tray for this particular plant, as they are broadcasted instead of individually sown. You can expect these to germinate in about a week.

Catnip. Similar to lemon balm, I recommend sprinkling these seeds across your pot, evenly spreading them and then covering them lightly with soil. They usually germinate in 8-15 days.

Chamomile. This herb, too, can be sprinkled across your moistened soil. Pat it down very lightly and then cover with a very light layer of soil. No need to bottom water this seed. Instead, only mist with a very fine mister on top. Also, unlike the other seeds, this seed needs light to germinate, so put it near a window right away or under grow lights. 

4. Label each pot or tray with the seed variety.

5. Bottom water your pots/trays (all accept for the chamomile). If you are using pots, fill the bottom saucer with lukewarm water to the top and allow the soil to absorb the water over the next hour. Check back and repeat this process as many times as needed to reach the surface of soil in your pot. If you’re using seed trays, fill the bottom tray with about an inch of lukewarm water and allow the soil to absorb the water over the next hour. It usually only takes one round for seed trays and small peat pots but can take a few rounds for pots, depending on how tall your pot is. For chamomile, only use a mister on top to dampen the top later of soil.

6. Cover all of your pots or trays with a clear plastic dome and set on your heat mat.

7. For chamomile only, add a grow light or place near window. It is the only seed in your set that requires light to germinate.

8. From here, be sure to check on them daily and water them if you notice that the top layer of soil is getting dry. I recommend this water mister, as it’s very gentle and won’t blow your tiny seeds away or drown your new seedlings. I tend to check on mine about 854,341 times a day to see if any of them have germinated yet.

Your seeds sprouted!! Do a happy dance and then follow these directions!

Once your seeds have sprouted, do the following:

1. Do a happy dance and sing to your seedlings to let them know how much you love them.
2. Call all your family members in (or Facetime them) so they can appreciate these tiny little perfect seedlings you created.
3. Share lots of Instagram stories showing them off and be sure to tag me so I can give you virtual high fives!
4. Okay, okay, okay. So those first three steps are recommended but not exactly necessary. But you should remove your seedlings from the heat mat and remove the plastic dome lids once they have sprouted. Because this can happen at different times for each type of seed, it is best to sow each variety in separate containers or trays so you can move one variety of seed (for example your calendula) off of heat while you are still patiently waiting for your bee balm to germinate on the heat mat.
5. Continue to water your seedlings whenever you see the soil become dry. This could be every day depending on the size and depth of the container you are growing them in, so just check on them once a day.

Have a lovely week, friends. I’ll post again next week!
Jess

Disclaimer: This article may contain Amazon affiliate links. Cedar House Living LLC receives a small commission for sales generated through these links at no additional cost to you. I use the commissions to further expand my garden, floral, and herbal knowledge so I can continue to share what I learn with you.