The lights are low wattage and will not provide much coverage as to the needs of new seedlings. Suggest you up the time to about 18-20 hours, and also use higher wattage lamps. They do sell a 2 foot long flouresent grow light thats about 40 watts. A north facing window will not give you much sunlight unless its also got light overhead. You can also wait for seedlings. If they seem to 'head out' the window, its a sure sign that they need more indoor light above them.

Thanks for the info. Do you think that it matters if the lights are closer to the soil vs a few feet up? the 23W were the hightest I could get without special ordering an expensive light and fixture.....we'll see...

Check out Home Depot. The 4 foot bulbs run about $5 each and they sell a 4 foot $10 shop light that holds two bulbs. All my seed starting is done on shelves that have two of the 4 foot shop lights on each shelf. I use a heat mat under the pot trays. The tapes don't seem to give even warmth. The heat mats are low wattage and need no thermostat control. Once the seeds sprout and grow to about 1-2 inches the heat can be shut off. The lamps can be close to soil, but if they give off heat, they can raise soil temps too high. Seeds like warmth from underneath as heat rises. My 500 watt mercury vapor lamps can cook leaves if the lamps are less than 6 inches from the seedlings. A 500 watt plant lamp can give me about 4 square feet of coverage under each lamp. Charley's Greenhouse has these.

Hmm, since i am using a large wooden container, I don't think that a heat tray would work....unless I could bury it as a layer, but then water couldn't bypass. Interesting...

My guess is you are using CFL (Compact Florescent Lights) which is probably this bulb here http://www.fluorescentefficiency.com/products/23-watt-compact-fluorescent-light-bulb-100-watt-equivalent/ since you got the daylight it is probably the 6400k and puts out about 1600 lumens of light so times that by 4 gives you 6400 lumens of blue light spectrum which is not so bad. You could definately upgrade to 4 more of those or invest in some envirolites which put out much more lumens - http://bettergrow-hydro-inc.amazonwebstore.com/Compact-Fluorescent-Daylight-105W/M/B000KOYDNG.htm?traffic_src=froogle&utm_medium=organic&utm_source=froogle

Those are exactly the bulbs I am using. Good to see I made a decent choice.
I suppose icould buy a shop light fixture with some 40 w grow bulbs to add to the mix. Or a cheaper option might be 2 more clamp lamps and 2 actual flo plant lights. Those would be a good addition. Right now I have only 2 of the four on the herb box. The other 2 lights are helping he houseplants in the room.

One statement that I did not see addressed was about distance to the soil. The bulbs should remain close to the soil as the plants sprout. By moving the lamps away the seedlings will grow too long of stems to maintain. The seedlings will continue growing until the stem buckles. At that time the fluids are not able to pass the buckle and the top starts to die.

One suggestion I have seen is to get the shop light and put one low and one high density bulb. I don't think density is the word I am looking for but one should give off lower spectrim rays and the other from the higher degree of light spectrum. If you have money enough just buy the full spectrim light bulbs used to provide light for seasonal depression (SAD).

If you want to go with a higher powered lamp I suggest HPS (High Pressure Sodium) over Metal Halide (MH). These bulbs do produce heat though and cover the entire spectrum - HPS are best suited for the flowering stage of development. They do however require a special ballast and can get quite costly. The higher the wattage the higher you can keep them away from your plants as these bulbs require distance because of the heat they produce. They give off an orange glow instead of the bright light you would get from a CFL. Check this site out it has lots of different setups and lights available http://www.hydroponics.net/items/

Wow Thanks so much all of you guys. I stopped by the store on the way home and nabbed a $10 shop fixture and 2 plant 48" flo lights. with those I have 10200 lumens over the whole sunroom plants, and now

5400 Lumens on the seed bed whereas before I only had 3200 Lumens before

And I just noticed I have Spinach Sprouts! from seed to soil break in 5 days!

Some of my 4 foot fixtures use a single grow light lamp, as well as a warm white or cool white lamp. The combo doesn't seem to cause any unusual issues with seedlings leaning over too much. Oddly, last spring my watermelon vines tend to head away from the lamps and I have to lift the vines and place them back into the lighted area. The heat mats are placed UNDERNEATH the trays or pots, NOT inside them. They get quite warm to the touch and this warmth can penetrate soil, plasic, and wood. Any warmth under a seed starting pot is much more beneficial to the germination. The tapes are more for a mass of soil or a very small area. The typical standard tray size is about 11 by 21 inches, and the heat mats come in a similar size. I bought a couple that are 2x4 feet. Also, I have a heavy rubber one with a metal wire grid it sits inside of. That one is not worth the bother to use, as it tends to raise the trays about 2-3 inches, when I don't want that much added height. It has very few wires on the grid which tend to cause trays to wobble on it. I stay with just the flat waterproof heat mats with a molded in power cord. Had these for 7 years now and they have not failed me yet.

I agree with the other posts that the first order of business is to get a stronger light, which you have done. I would, however like to comment on some of the seeds you have planted.

Basil should be treated as a tropical annual. It needs warm soil temperatures to germinate, about five degrees more than other herbs. Don't be surprised if you get a low germinatin rate.

You mention mint seeds but don't say which mint. I am guessing peppermint. I'm sorry to say that peppermint seeds do not exist. Peppermint is a sterile hybrid. For verification I would refer you to The Big Book of Herbs by Tucker and deBaggio. If those seeds you planted do germinate, they are probably (according to Tucker) an inferior form of oregano.

Regarding sage seeds, I would hesitate sowing them this early, even indoors. I can't say positively, but I would think they need warm temperatures, just like basil.

In my Z6 I start seeds in mid April to end of May planting. In Z8, I would expect that you could start seeds in late February, and plant in about mid April, provided there are no frosts at that time. Here, its zero degrees right now. Even for that, my outdoor thyme is still doing well.