One of the most economical ways to start a garden is to start your plants from seed. This will open up a whole new world of varieties other than the normal selection of plants normally found at the “big box” stores.

To get an early start on the season, it is best to start many of your plants indoors. Determine which seeds you will start indoors and which you will direct-seed outdoors. Then follow these steps.

Fill the containers

Moisten your medium before filling your planting containers. Use a dishwashing tub or wheelbarrow to hold the planting medium and slowly add water until the mix is thoroughly moistened but not soggy.

The best way to prevent uneven filling in seedling trays is to pile the mix in the center of the tray and gently sweep it into the cells in an outward motion with your hands.

Sow carefully

Mist the mix with a spray bottle just before you place the seeds. This gives the seeds a better chance to maintain contact with the moisture they need to sprout.

Drop the seeds onto the surface of the mix, spacing them as evenly as possible. Cover them with more moist mix to the required depth as stated on the seed package.

In the case of seeds that need light to germinate, sprinkle some dry mix on the surface of the moist mix, drop the seeds on top, then mist with the spray bottle.

Large seeds should be pushed into the mix to the required depth with your finger. Maintain consistent moisture with regular and thorough misting.

Space correctly

Sow seeds close together in case some of them fail to germinate successfully. Once the emerging seedlings are tall enough to grasp, remove the extra ones so those remaining are evenly spaced and not crowded.

The correct spacing between seedlings depends on how much room the mature plant needs. Most of the time you want to thin to one healthy plant per container for transplanting.

To prevent damage to the root system of the remaining plant(s), thin by cutting with nail scissors at soil level instead of by pulling.

Keep seeds warm and moist

Cover the flats with plastic wrap, tray domes, or glass to keep the environment humid and place them near a heat vent or on a heat mat made especially for seed starting.

Most seeds germinate well at about 70 degrees F. To prevent the seeds and seedlings from drying out, keep the soil damp but not wet, until the seedlings are several inches tall, then gradually taper off watering.

Mist with a spray bottle or set the trays into water so the mix wicks up the moisture from below.

Give them light

At the first signs of sprouting, uncover and move the containers to a bright spot – a sunny window, greenhouse, or beneath a couple of ordinary fluorescent shop lights (4-footers with two 40-watt bulbs).

Lights provide a steady source of high-intensity light. Short days (especially a problem for north-facing windows) restrict window light, and your seedlings need 12 to 16 hours of light a day.

Suspend the lights to 2 inches above the plants, gradually raising them as the seedlings mature. If plants have to stretch or lean toward the light, they can become weak and spindly. Turn the lights on and off at the same time each day, or hook them up to an electric timer.

Decrease heat

Seedlings can stay cooler than germinating seeds. Move them away from radiators and air vents, or off the heating mat, as soon they have germinated.

Apply fertilizer

If you are using a soil-less mix without compost, begin to fertilize your seedlings as soon as they get their first true leaves; these emerge after the small, round cotyledon leaves.

Water with a half-strength solution of liquid fish or seaweed fertilizer every week or two. Use either a spray bottle or add the fertilizer to the water you set the trays in if you're using the wick-up method described above.

Give them more space

If the seedlings outgrow their containers or crowd one another, repot them into larger containers filled with a mix that includes compost.

Extract the seedlings with a narrow fork or flat stick, and handle by their leaves and roots to avoid damaging the fragile stems. Tuck the seedlings gently into the new pots, and water them to settle the roots.

Pet your seedlings

Lightly ruffling seedlings once or twice a day with your hand or a piece of cardboard helps them to grow stocky and strong. Or, set up a small fan to gently, continuously blow on your seedlings.

Toughen them up

About one week before the plants are to go outside, start acclimating them to the harsh conditions of the big world. Gardeners call this “hardening off.”

On a warm spring day move the containers to a shaded, protected place, such as a porch, for a few hours.

Each day – unless the weather is horrible – gradually increase the plant’s exposure to sun and breeze. At the end of the week leave them out overnight; then transplant them into the garden.

To learn which seeds to sow in Lake County gardens, contact the Lake County U.C. Master Gardeners.

For even more detailed information regarding seed starting, soil “recipes,” when to plant, and how deep to sow, attend the Spring Garden Event on May 5 at the Agricultural Center, 883 Lakeport Blvd., Lakeport. The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

For more information on the event, contact University of California Cooperative Extension at 707-263-6838 or at http://celake.ucanr.edu/Master_Gardener/Educational_Events_6/ .

U.C. Master Gardeners are a group of selected, trained residents who work as volunteer staff for the U.C. Cooperative Extension (UCCE), the public service arm of the University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. U.C. Master Gardeners provide accurate horticultural information on vegetable gardening, trees, soils, lawns, ornamental horticulture, insects, diseases, use of pesticides, and other related topics based on research of the University of California and other recognized research institutions.

Dianne Kaufman is a University of California Master Gardener.