Your garden can start inside now

You may not be thinking much about spring, but you should.

The time for planning and planting the hardiest seeds is here. These are the plants that can take – and prefer – the cold.

Many vegetables need a period of six to eight weeks from seed before they are ready to face the rigors of the real world. Add it up and you are looking at March as a planting-out date.

This may seem early – and it is for many of the more tender garden candidates such as tomatoes and peppers – but cabbage, kohlrabi, leeks and scallions will reward you if they get an early start.

But not outside. Even now – the season that knows no winter – chances are it's going to get too cold for tender seedlings to survive. Even if they do survive, you're not gaining any ground if they just sit there and wait for the warmth. It's inside where your garden should start.

Bright windowsills usually supply enough light. If you don't have a bright, south-facing window, you might consider starting them under fluorescent lights. A two-bulb fixture with a warm-white and a cool-white bulb will give you the entire spectrum of light that plants require for optimum growth. Bulbs intended for illuminating aquariums or grow lights can also be used, though they are more expensive.

These fixtures are inexpensive, and it's a good way for beginners to get started in the craft of raising seedlings. You may literally outgrow such a setup quickly if you become interested in seed starting.

There are two advantages to starting your own seeds. First, you get to start your plants when you want them. You're not at the mercy of the store that is selling you seedlings that were raised in Florida and shipped to you stressed and late. Second, you get to start what you want.

Ordering from mail order or Internet catalogs will expand your choices. With a simple light set up and the Internet, you can start gourmet seeds from Italy (www.growitalian.com), rare heirlooms ( www.seedsavers.org), your own perennial herbs (www.richters.com) or native bean varieties passed down for centuries (www.nativeseeds.org). Or you can go to a big-box store and get those Big Boy tomato transplants again.

Buy a good quality potting soil for your seeds. You can use any kind of container, but if you are growing under lights you'll want everything to be the same height.

Among the very first seeds to sow are leeks. They can be started outside, but they do much better inside.

Leeks take a while from seed to harvest, as much as 160 days depending on the variety. Leeks are sweeter than onions and add a mellow depth to dishes, especially soups, without the heat or bite of other onion-family members. Onions can also be grown from seeds. They take a few weeks less than leeks, but they can be started under lights now, too.

Broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower all can be started from seed indoors. They can all take extremes of cold, but they fail quickly in the heat.

When growing any of these crops, an important thing to remember is to keep seedlings growing strong and sturdy. Give them plenty of light – 14 to 16 hours per day of fluorescent light – and don't let the roots circle around in the bottom of the container.

Fertilize them regularly to maintain vigor, which will be exhibited in a deep-green color. If they begin to outgrow their space you might need to move them to a protected location outside.

A cold frame is a box with a glass or plastic top, angled toward the sun. It is intended to introduce tender seedlings to the outdoors without fully exposing them to the elements. A specially built cold frame is ideal, but you can get by with an old window propped up on a few bales of hay in a pinch. At all costs, try to avoid stressing the seedlings with too much heat, too much water and too little light.

Beginners often overwater, leading to a condition called "damping off." Try to keep things moist, but not wet. It takes some practice, so don't be frustrated if you lose a few seedlings.

Another group to consider is the perennial and biennial herbs. These include thyme, chives, parsley, lovage and others. Lavender and rosemary are sub shrubs and easier to raise from cuttings than seeds. All these take a long season to grow and establish. They are best started early.

As artificial as it sounds, there is something comforting about the smell of moist soil and the sight of little nodding seedlings unfurling beneath the hum of fluorescent bulbs. It's a kind of an electric spring, two months early.

JANUARY 27 IN THE GARDEN

Plant

       The business of starting seed gets serious. Onions; seed or sets, peas, radish, and rhubarb may be started outside. These all germinate in low soil temperatures. Cabbage, collards, broccoli, cauliflower, and lettuce can be started indoors for later transplanting. Perennial plants that need a stratification period (moist cold) to germinate should be underway.

Roses, ornamental trees and shrubs, hardy vines and groundcovers like ivy and liriope may all be planted now. Tree fruit (apples, peaches, etc.), and bush fruit (blueberries, raspberries, black berries etc.) and nut trees may all be planted now.

Fertilize

Seedlings should be fertilized when they have their second set of true leaves. Use a light organic liquid fertilizer such as liquid kelp or fish emulsion to avoid burning tender seedlings. Otherwise use very dilute houseplant fertilizer. As bulb shoots begin to appear outside, scratch in a little fertilizer.

Spray

There is still time before bud break to spray dormant oil on fruit trees. Apply when temperatures are expected to stay above freezing for the day.

Pruning

The biggest chore this time of year is pruning. All fruit trees should be pruned now. Summer flowering shrubs like butterfly bush and crepe myrtle may be pruned. Remove the spent foliage of liriope and ornamental grasses before new growth begins . Major renovation of broadleaf shrubs should be accomplished now if necessary.