Seed Starting in Soil Blocks

3/4" soil blocks; the basil sprouted in 2 days

I love both of my soil blockers, the 3/4" and the 2". They make it easy to start seeds indoors. This picture is a regular nursery flat, recycled, of course, with 200 of the 3/4" blocks. Two of these fit neatly on my germination mat under two 4 foot florescent lights.

(Click the picture to see a larger version) This batch has 4 kinds of basil, 3 marigold varieties (two of which are edible) along with some other herbs and flowers. Some of the seeds are really old and may not sprout. That's why I like doing them in these tiny blocks, if they don't sprout I haven't wasted too much space/time/energy. These tiny blocks are not meant for growing any plant for more than a few days, then they need to move up to the bigger, 2" blocks.

recycled salad container

When moisture and warmth are really critical I make blocks in things like this recycled salad container. I'll remove the plastic lid as soon as the eggplant seeds sprout.

Tomato seedlings germinate in 3/4" soil blocks

On another tray last week I started the tomatoes and peppers, these tomatoes need to move up to bigger blocks ASAP!

If you've never heard of soil blocks before, they are compressed blocks of peat based potting mix. They eliminate plastic pot waste and expense and provide an ideal environment for seed germination. For more information see my three part article on making and using soil blocks, "Seed Starting in Soil Blocks"