You can water at the top or the bottom. Many people get fungal disease, which affects seedling growth, by watering on top of the soil if it is kept too moist. This has never happened to me, but you want to be careful how much water you use. You can avoid this issue by pouring water into the bottom catch tray; the seedlings will absorb it up through the holes in the tray.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website heavy duty seed starter trays.
When it comes time to remove your seedlings, a butter knife is your best friend. Just insert it gently along the side of the soil and pop your seedling out.
Always be sure to wash and sterilize your tray kits before use for new seeds. The moment after I transplant my seedlings, I wash my trays out and remove any dirt or debris and let them dry out before storage. When it comes time to start new seeds, I soak my trays in a diluted bleach solution to kill off any lingering bacteria that could harm my new seed babies. You can use a 9:1 ratio of water to bleach, or 9 cups of water for every 1 cup of bleach.
I personally do not use a heating mat and do just fine; however, I see plenty of gardeners and, for sure, farmers who use them and have excellent and speedier germination. I don&#;t feel this is necessary to get started if your space is warm, but it can definitely help.
There is also an option to purchase a dome. I have used domes at times and not used them at times, and in my opinion, they aren&#;t totally necessary if you have a warm space to start your seeds. If your space is a little cooler, like less than 72 degrees, then a dome can provide extra warmth and humidity for your seeds to germinate.
Regardless of your age or experience level, there&#;s never a wrong time to try out home gardening. Whether you&#;re interested in gardening as a hobby, a side hustle or simply want beautiful blooms in your space, you&#;ll need to learn the basics. In addition to durable gardening shears, raised garden beds and other gardening supplies, an easy-to-use seed starting tray is a great way to jumpstart your journey.
SKIP AHEAD What is a seed starting tray? | How we picked the best seed starting trays | The best seed starting trays | How to shop for seed starting trays
To help you choose the best seed starting trays, we consulted gardening experts for shopping advice and compiled a list of their recommendations &#; bestselling brands like Gardener&#;s Supply and Burpee are included.
Seed starting trays are shallow trays with multiple small plots (called cells) organized in a grid, which help to germinate seeds for gardeners of all skill levels. Trays are typically made from plastic, biodegradable or compostable material, the latter of which can be planted directly into the ground. &#;[A seed starting tray] differs from planters or pots in that the space for the seed and eventual plant to grow is much smaller,&#; says Carmen DeVito, a professional garden designer and the founder of Garden Cult.
Some people use seed starting trays as a starting point for sprouting seedlings &#; &#;They are essentially temporary homes for your seedlings to grow until they are ready to go out into the garden or into their permanent homes in containers,&#; says DeVito. Seed starting trays also have drainage holes to prevent overwatering.
We spoke with DeVito and horticulturalist Nathan Heinrich, both of whom emphasized the following factors when recommending the best seed starting trays:
Material: Seed starting trays are available in either plastic or some sort of composted material, such as peat, wood pulp and coir (coconut fibers). Seed trays made from peat, for example, are beneficial because you can plant them directly into native soil once the seeds have germinated and sprouted. That said, trays made from composted material are sometimes not as durable as plastic options. Plastic seed trays are prized because they hold up well against root growth and different elements that may disturb the plant. If you do use plastic trays to grow edible plants, look for ones that are BPA free.
Soil type: Soil is foundational to plant growth, and different types may be better suited for certain types of plants. You can buy a seed starting mix that&#;s premade or you can make your own using a mix of soil and fertilizer.
Light exposure: Plants sown in seed starting trays should be placed wherever they can get sufficient light exposure. If using artificial light, however, make sure those plants are easy to grow under such conditions, according to DeVito. &#;I recommend using [seed starting trays] to start plants like tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, zucchini and some flowering perennials that do best when they are started indoors under lights,&#; she says. &#;This gives them a head start for the season to flower or produce fruit and other edible parts quicker.&#; You can also buy seed starting trays with grow light attachments if your access to natural light is limited.
Watering: Seedlings also need sufficient water to grow. In addition to watering cans, you can often buy watering trays, sometimes called a reservoir, bottom tray or propagation tray, which goes under the cells of the seed starting tray. Depending on what you&#;re planting, you can water seedlings in seed trays by either watering them from above or by adding water to the tray below. Since seed starting trays have small holes on the bottom, it allows the plants to absorb water from below. Ensuring you have the space, supplies and time to do this regularly is important if you plan on using a seed starting tray.
Below, we rounded up seed starting trays recommended by our experts and ones that have at least a 4-star average rating from at least 500 reviews on Amazon. All of them are either made of plastic, silicone or biodegradable material.
This plastic seed starting tray from Gardener&#;s Supply Company comes recommended by DeVito, who says it&#;s a great option for beginners. The seed-starting kit has two 24-cell seed starting trays with a propagation tray for watering, two germination dome covers which regulate temperature, a six-quart bag of seed starting soil mix, a capillary mat and wooden seedling marking sticks. While the seed starting tray is suitable for both indoor and outdoor gardening, it&#;s best if used for growing indoor or greenhouse seedlings, according to the brand. The propagation tray underneath the seed tray helps maintain water over time, so your plants receive continuous self-watering, according to the brand.
This biodegradable seed starting tray, also from Gardener&#;s Supply Company, comes recommended by DeVito, who says it&#;s good for gardeners who want an eco-friendly option. As is common with biodegradable seed starting trays, you can plant these pots directly into the ground due to the organic material. The wood fiber cells are both durable enough to help promote plant growth for seedlings but they&#;re also easy to work with when transplanting them into your garden bed.
This vibrant, modern-looking silicone seed starting tray from Burpee is a perfect option for gardeners with limited space, like a windowsill, according to DeVito. The tray has the same features of a typical plastic or biodegradable tray, such as small holes underneath for soaking up and draining water. The most unique aspect, however, is the pliable silicone bottoms that allow you to easily press the seedlings out of the cells and transplant into native soil or a large pot when ready.
For more plastic planting traysinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.
This Mixc seed starting tray has everything growers want to sow multiple types of seeds. The plastic tray kit includes a cell tray and a propagation tray, both of which fit together underneath a plastic humidity dome, also included. The dome cover also has adjustable vents on the top that you can change by hand, depending on the weather or climate you want to expose your plants to. The tray is also safe to use with a heat mat, according to the brand. That means you can have even more control over the temperature around your plants, which is important if you live in a particularly cold environment. The model has a 4.4-star average rating from over 8,000 reviews on Amazon.
The Gardzen seed starting tray has all of the basics required for setting up your seedlings. The model has the usual multi-cell seed tray, draining holes on the bottoms and a plastic humidity dome for temperature regulation. Since the brand offers large capacity cell trays, with both 40-cell and 70-cell options, each of the tray kits have domes with multiple adjustable vents on the top for optimal temperature regulation. It also has a 4.6-star average rating from over 6,000 reviews on Amazon.
The Growneer seed trays are made from peat, a biodegradable material made of composted organic material, which makes them ideal for planting the seedlings directly into the ground once they sprout. The brand sells 10-cell and six-cell trays, both of which come with T-shaped plant labels that you can stick into each cell with soil. A benefit of peat seed starting trays like this one, is that you can cut and separate each cell however you want.
If you plan on using your seed starting tray indoors, consider purchasing one with a grow light. While many plants and seedlings thrive while growing indoors, a grow light can help make the germination process smoother and faster. A grow light also makes it easier to provide your plants with light, regardless of where in your home they are, especially a space with limited natural light. The light on this tray has adjustable settings that can be controlled with a remote. Plus, it has a 4.3-star average rating from over 3,000 reviews on Amazon.
If it&#;s your first time shopping for seed starting trays, it&#;s important to keep certain features in mind, such as the material of the tray, the size and number of cells, and where you plan on transplanting the seedlings. It&#;s also crucial to make sure you have the proper space to transfer them to, such as a large flower pot or garden bed.
The type of seed starting tray you choose also matters. Seed starting trays are either made from plastic or composted material such as peat or wood fibers. Both work fine for growing seedlings, but there are benefits and drawbacks to using each type, which we explain below.
Plastic trays are a popular choice for growing seedlings because they&#;re durable enough to use multiple times. &#;The plastic [seed starting trays] are theoretically reusable and usually cheaper,&#; says DeVito. &#;[And] depending on the type of plastic, possibly recyclable.&#; That said, plastic seed starting trays are less environmentally friendly compared to peat trays since you have to remove the seedlings by hand to transplant them into garden beds or native soil.
Biodegradable trays are also commonly used for starting seeds because they don&#;t require disturbing the plant roots while transplanting. Since they&#;re made from organic material, they&#;re safe to plant directly in the ground. That said, if you&#;re an experienced gardener and plant seedlings often, keep in mind that using peat trays requires buying new ones annually, which can be costly for some.
Frequently asked questions
Seed starting trays are helpful tools for beginners, but they&#;re also something that even experienced gardeners can use to grow seedlings in a safe and organized way. &#;One of the main reasons for using seed trays with individual &#;grow cells&#; is spacing,&#; says Heinrich. &#;By placing one or more seeds into a seed tray with individual &#;cells&#; or &#;plugs,&#; you allow the seeds to sprout in their own tiny space without being over-crowded and having to compete with their fellow seedings for root space, water, and sunlight.&#;
Plus, since the seedlings are divided into individual plots, they&#;re easier to transplant compared to open seedling trays because the roots of each plant are separated. &#;While some people like to sow seeds in &#;open seed trays&#; that do not have individual grow cells, this method has a much lower success rate with most varieties,&#; says Heinrich. &#;While it is a faster way to sow your seeds initially, you end up with more labor when it comes time to divide the seedlings for transplanting.&#;
Yes, seed starting trays, even ones that you make from more common biodegradable material, such as egg cartons, need drainage holes on the bottom. This is to ensure that the roots aren&#;t overwhelmed with too much watering. Also, if you have seed trays with a propagation tray, the holes on the bottom allow you to water the plants from the underneath rather than from above.
Something important to keep in mind when using a seed starting tray is that you can use them both indoors and outdoors. Since seeds starting trays are meant for growing seedlings that will be transplanted later, whether or not to start them indoors depends on your preference and the type of plant. Some varieties are fine to plant indoors or outdoors, while some are more suited for one or the other.
Depending on what you&#;re planting and when you expect it to sprout, you should start seeds around six weeks before your last expected frost date, according to The Old Farmer&#;s Almanac. A frost date is the date that the last freezing cold temperature is projected to happen where you live. This helps prevent your plants from dying in the cold. You can use resources such as an Almanac, to see what the expected frost dates are for your area.
Professional gardeners look at planting zone maps, also called plant hardiness zones, to choose the optimal time to start their seeds, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. Planting zones are regions throughout the United States with their own climate profile, each of which has its own letter and number combination related to a certain type of climate. Planting zones range from 1a to 13b, with 1a being the coldest and 13b being the warmest. This helps gardeners and farmers know what is best to plant where they live and when.
At NBC Select, we work with experts who have specialized knowledge and authority based on relevant training and/or experience. We also take steps to ensure all expert advice and recommendations are made independently and without undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.
Cory Fernandez is a commerce editor at NBC Select, where he covers food, cooking, cleaning, lifestyle and wellness. He spoke with professional gardeners and horticulturalists for their insight, recommendations and guidance.
Catch up on NBC Select&#;s in-depth coverage of personal finance, tech and tools, wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok to stay up to date.
The company is the world’s best 24 Cavities Seedling Trays Wholesale supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.