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germinating seeds first vs straight in garden?

I have a big garden and a lot of seeds to plan but I see all these videos on seed germinating. Whats the point? Cant I just put them in the garden? pros cons?

Public Comments

1. The idea is to get the plants in the garden after the last chance of frost. Plants like tomatoes need 50 to 80 days before the fruit is ready. How long is your growing season? Pickles, beans, radishes, lettuce and other plants can be seeded directly. Also can be planted every two weeks to have fresh beans and similar plants harvested during the season.
2. Generally you can start them inside or out. Corn doesn't transplant well and when it does, you get faster growth from planting outside. Cons of planting outside: birds eat seeds, slugs and snails eat seedlings, colder weather slows or halts germination, you may have to plant a lot and then thin out the excess Pros of planting outside: some veggies don't transplant well, grow lights not needed, extra space indoors not needed, plants don't need to be hardened off (ie set out in the morning and brought in at night every few days until plants adjust to sun, wind, rain, temperature variations), rain will do some of your watering for you and soil will hold water longer Pros of planting indoors first: get a really early start so plants are big when weather gets warm, flowering earlier and fruiting sooner with more production Cons of starting plants indoors: damp off disease (seedlings look wilted after germinating and die from a fungus that attacks the stems), grow lights of sun room needed so plants get enough light (otherwise they get lanky or don't develop enough green chlorophyll), you have to harden off the plants, you have to water all the time That's all I can think of off the top of my head. I usually plant beets, lettuce, and other cold weather seeds outside. I don't have enough space for corn in my current garden. I plant chile peppers, tomatoes, okra, eggplant, basil, various kinds of squash indoors. I plant some squash outdoors as well. It's a kind of either way for me.
3. Pre-germination tells you exactly how many plants you have, and when you put them out, they are correctly spaced. Not all seeds sown directly in the garden come up and some come up too close together.
4. Cant tell if youre talking about vegetables or regular flowers and what not... I dont have much experience with vegetables, but with ornamental flowering plants, yes. For example, the morning glory usually takes 7-14 days to germinate. But, if its scarified (nicking it with a file, plus soaking it overnight in warm water) and then planted, within about two days I have my seedlings. Like someone else said, planting them indoors can make them less hardy. Many plants, if started in pots indoors, will wilt and die when transplanted outdoors. Id say read up on the species of plants youre planting, and then go from there. :)
5. If you sow indoors you have tighter control over the conditions, such as humidity, light and temperature, whereas outdoors this is left to nature - though you can have some control if you cover the ground with a cloche cover etc. The other benefit of germinating indoors is that you can start when conditions outdoors would not be suitable, thus giving you a head start. Generally indoors growing wastes less seed, but is more labour intensive, so this all depends on your needs, location as well as plant choice. Some plants are much better if sown direct, and do not transplant well, such as poppies. I'd research the plants that you want to grow, and see what their cultural conditions are, as well as your current weather. If you're able to get outdoors easily, managing watering, thinning out the plants etc, then it can be very attractive if your plants are hardy just to sow outdoors where your plants are to grow. For some of us we don't have the space indoors to grow many plants, and it's nicer to keep everything outside. If you're wanting to grow something that's really tricky, and the seeds respond well to transplanting, I'd encourage you to grow indoors, even if it's just to get the seeds germinated, before moving them elsewhere. Overall, many plants are very hardy, grow easily in poor soils, and will just get on with it, as long as there are no animal pests and they get sufficient water and heat. Hope this helps. Good luck! Rob
6. Besides getting an early start, I always plant tiny seeds in a Jiffy pack because most need to be sown on the surface and outdoors, I don't get as good a germination rate, plus some of the seeds blow away.