I use SuperSoil Potting Soil to start all my seeds, as the soilless seed mixes in my home improvement stores are grossly overpriced.

Here is a link that might be useful: my blog

I use Canadian peat moss mixed with an equal part fine hardwood mulch. I then start mixing in perlite until it looks about the same as what the plants at the box stores grow in. I use that to start all my seeds. I've got quite a few seedlings today that I didn't have yesterday. The warm weather here on my piney wood hill has really got my seeds sprouting fast.

When it's time to move the seedlings into 4" pots, I use the same mix with compost added. I usually also throw in a handful of blood and bone meal.

Being near a lake, and being a fisherman of sorts, I have some fish carcasses rotting away in five gallon buckets of rain water. It's rank but it sure grows some great plants.

Oh, but you just wanted to know what to start your cabbage seeds in.....just about anything that will hold moisture will work to start seeds.

i throw them in soil in oct and in few weeks replant the seedlings to my flower beds. I harvested 15 cabages which were started from seed last oct.

I don't know what part of the country you are in, ProMix and Fafard are both well liked for sowing those seeds by many who don't want to use a regular seed sowing medium.

Neither are available to me here (No Ace Hardware here either, if they don't stock I think they will order ProMix and let you pick it up for no shipping.), I use the Cornell Peat Light 'recipe' but mixed, bagged for us by a local nursery - I don't have to buy the ingredients in bulk and mix myself.