Suggest you check out all the FAQs and discussions over on the Growing from Seed Forum here as they deal with these questions regularly.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Growing from Seed forum - FAQs

I didn't really find the answer in the FAQs... thanks for the link though.

Did you see the one on What Containers to use? Pics of all sorts of choices. Not to mention there are lots of discussions there on the question just full of suggestions.

Most use cell packs and trays made for the purpose. They are available most anywhere garden supplies are sold. Some use yogurt cups or plastic butter dishes with holes in the bottom, some use Dixie cups starting with the small 3 oz. ones and transplanting up to the 16 oz ones later.

As the FAQ say anything that will hold approx. 2" of soil-less potting mix. As to mix to use, that too is a common question and there are lots of choices available. Professionals tend to use Pro-Mix or a similar product but for small numbers of plants a small bag of any soil-less potting mix works fine.

Seed Starting mix discussions

What containers to use discussions Just scroll down to the ones in the blue frames.

It sounds as if your main problem was you didn't transplant them frequently enough. Very few things can be successfully seeded and grown till garden time in the same containers. You have to gradually increase the size, called "potting up".

Peppers, Eggplant, Tomatoes, Cabbage, and Broccoli for transplant next month.

Not all of these things are started at the same time or transplanted to the garden at the same time either. And in your zone (6b) "next month" (February) will be too early for starting tomatoes and peppers and eggplants.

At any rate this is all discussed in great detail on the other forum. It may seem a little slow there right now as it is still quite early for most of the country but it will pick up fast in another 4-6 weeks or so but meanwhile all these questions have been often discussed in past seasons and the forum search at the bottom of the page there will pull up all sorts of info for you. Saves us all having to type the same info over and over again. :)

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Growing from Seed forum

When I said next month, I meant March.

It actually works out that the seedlings are starting within a couple weeks of each other, as the cabbage and broccoli need less time than the others. I have already laid out my dates.

The one What Containers to Use doesn't suggest anything, other than you can use anything. It doesn't discuss the size of the containers that should be used, and doesn't mention "potting up". I'm not sure I understand how the "potting up" thing works. Why would seedlings need to be transplanted frequently? It seems counterintuitive. Are there any recommended discussions on this subject?

The optimum pot will depend on your situation. If you have a lot to start and limited lighting you will need smaller pots. Also you can fit more square pots in a tray than round ones under the same light set up. Large pots hold more water.

I use 2 1/4 square rose pots and 3 inch square pots (all plastic). I choose the rose pots for tomatoes because I have a lot of starts. I use the 3 inch squares for lettuce because they may stay in the pots longer while waiting for a spot in a container. If I am running short on starting mix I use the rose pots. If I have room in the trays and have a lot of mix I use the 3 inch squares.

My rec is to use three inch squares if you have room under the lights and in the trays and have the mix. Use 2 1 /4 inch squares if you need to be conservative.

The dimensions of the tray also play a role in pot size selection. You want to fit them nicely in your tray and not have them fall over.

Where are you transplanting tomatoes in March? Surely not outside in zone 6? Do you mean plant them up to a bigger container indoors?

I use 3 inch plastic square pots exclusively anymore. 18 will fit in a tray to germinate and then 12 to grow them out except tomatoes who get a larger pot to finish in...yogurt cups with a hole drilled in the bottom.

I love Fert-a-lome starting and potting mix...a lot of peat I think. It soaks up the water very quickly.

My plants get light from the moment they germinate and since I am retired, I take them outdoors whenever possible' I feed them too without skimping. They grow very well.

I use 3 inch plastic square pots exclusively anymore. 18 will fit in a tray to germinate and then 12 to grow them out except tomatoes who get a larger pot to finish in...yogurt cups with a hole drilled in the bottom.

I love Fert-a-lome starting and potting mix...a lot of peat I think. It soaks up the water very quickly.

My plants get light from the moment they germinate and since I am retired, I take them outdoors whenever possible' I feed them too without skimping. They grow very well.

I find GW trying to double post on me....no other site doing that.

I find GW trying to double post on me....no other site doing that.

I use a variety of pots, and it kind of depends on what I'm planting what pots I use.

For tomatoes, I start out with a 12 oz styrofoam cup or a 3 inch plastic pot, then pot up into larger pots as needed as they get bigger- I will do this 2-3 times before putting them into the garden finally. Each time I put them into a bigger pot I plant them deep as well. If I don't do it this way, I sometimes use half gallon juice jugs with drain holes drilled in them and just mound the seedlings as they get taller- I do this sometimes with container tomatoes that tend to stay smaller overall.

For peppers, I usually start with smaller butter tubs or 3 inch pots, and pot up 1-2 times before they get their final garden space. This depends on the pepper- some I grow stay rather small at 18 inches or under, so they don't need so much transplant- others can grow 3-4 feet tall and need it.

Brassicas I tend to do 2 inch pots, and only sometimes have I potted them up to a 3 inch pot. Using plastic the whole time. I have also occasionally used 12 oz Styrofoam cups. This year I'm trying a new method with 2 inch pots that someone else posted here on GW. Last year I used recycled toilet paper tubes for my kale, and that worked well enough that I'm doing the same thing this year. The tp tubes are kind of nice because they peel off the root ball real well.

A pot I use a lot too is recycled mushroom tubs. Some I have punched holes in the bottoms, some are not. These I will sow with special beans, squash, melons, lots of herbs and flowers- and sometimes even to start tomatoes or peppers if I'm out of other pots. Which does not happen very often since peppers and tomatoes are the earliest ones to be started. Unpunched tubs can be a nice water tray if I'm only starting a couple smaller pots or as a base for a larger pot. Like right now I'm using one to hold a pair of 3 inch pots I just started 7 pot peppers in- and the only reason I started those so early is because they have a super long season.

I do also use a lot of base trays- because although 18 3 inch pots fit in one, rarely is that enough room once the plants get bigger, even when I leave them in 3 inch pots. This is in part due to the fact that I like to let my plants get a little bigger than what you sometimes find in the nurseries that will sell a 4 pack of tomatoes in 2 inch pots that are only 4 inches tall, or an even smaller 6 pack of peppers only 4 inches tall.

The transplants I purchased last year were badly rootbound. The peat pots did not degrade and I pulled some in the fall and found the same rootball as when they were planted. I wanted to deal with this by starting my seeds indoors myself. None of the seedlings I purchased did well except the tomatoes so I am not wasting my money again this year. All my direct sown crops did well.

Just wanted to point out that it's best to remove peat pots from the rootballs prior to transplanting them. Or at the very least the bottoms of the pots should be removed. Contrary to what the sellers of peat pots claim, they almost never compost in a single season and they will restrict root growth to the point of stunting the plant. As you saw for yourself when you pulled them up. If you had removed the pots from the plants they would have done much better. Not that it matters now.

Agree with others about using smaller pots or cell packs when starting initially. As I said in a separate post of yours a while back, starting small saves space indoors so you can start more. Once you start potting them up it is usually about the time to start transitioning them outdoors, if possible.

Rodney

what Dave (digdirt) said was spot-on. Just listen to him ;) Every gardener worth their weight in peat starts in cellpacks, 1204's is what I use, and gradually step seedlings up to 3" pots (or 1801's) or 4" until ready to be hardened-off. Can't produce any scientific studies stating that this is beneficial or not, but I can tell you that in my experience, this works. Also, Light Warrior seed starting mix is really great stuff,but Pro-Mix and Fafard 3-B with a little extra vermiculite added works wonders too. (AVOID Miracle-Gro media like the plague)

So there are several 'right' ways to do this....it just depends on your needs.

I remember the field tomato plug trays with about 200 cells. Wow, I did not like the looks of those skinny plants at planting time, but they really took off after planting. The point is that it worked for their needs.

So there are several 'right' ways to do this....it just depends on your needs.

I remember the field tomato plug trays with about 200 cells. Wow, I did not like the looks of those skinny plants at planting time, but they really took off after planting. The point is that it worked for their needs.

Hey Weirdtrev, I am sure it has to do with their affiliation with Monsanto. A lot of folks consider Monsanto enemy #1 of the home gardener for many different reasons. It is really personal preference.

I found the Miracle Grow texture to vary a lot from batch to batch, and I quit it for that reason...not because of a vendetta against a company. I use some Miracle Grow liquid plant food for plants in containers.

I found the Miracle Grow texture to vary a lot from batch to batch, and I quit it for that reason...not because of a vendetta against a company. I use some Miracle Grow liquid plant food for plants in containers.