Comments on: big rig: my circa 1989 seed-starter stand

By: Margaret

Margaret — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:52:27 +0000

Welcome, Diane. How crafty! I have seen that somewhere but never tried…good one. Thank you.

By: Diane

Diane — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:03:45 +0000

I make starter pots out of newspaper that has been wrapped around an appropriate size container – about a half inch longer than the container – moistened with water and folding the bottom over itself – remove the container and add soil, plant your seed and the container goes right in the ground – roots are never disturbed and the paper becomes part of the soil!

By: Suzanne

Suzanne — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 18:57:13 +0000

We use an inexpensive plastic storage shelving unit (6′ high, 4′ wide) from Lowes. My husband rigged it with two 4-foot 2-bulb fluorescent shop lights (the cheapest we could find) per shelf. We hang them from chains hooked into cup hooks on each end of the shelf above, so we can adjust the height of the lights as the seedlings grow. I can get 4 seed trays on each level, and later in the spring, when the plants are tall enough, I put some on the top shelf and use the room’s fluorescent lights for those plants. We do this in our garage, beginning in early March (we live in a Zone 1A area of Alaska) through late May, when it’s warm enough to roll (my husband added heavy-duty wheels) in and out of the garage during the day to harden off the plants. Works great and we can use the shelves for other purposes when they’re not holding lights and plants.