Sowing Seeds & Seedlings
Seed starting and seedling care inside a Growing Dome are dramatically more productive than starting seeds outdoors or in a basement under lights. Stable temperatures, abundant natural light, and controllable conditions create an ideal environment for raising the next generation of dome plants. This category brings together writing on dome-based seed starting: timing across the seasons, propagation setups that work, seedling care best practices, hardening off for outdoor transplants when relevant, and stories from owners on how they've structured their seed starting around the dome's natural conditions.
Grow Better: Easy Seed Starting Tips for a Bountiful Garden
January 23, 2026
Starting your seeds indoors, whether in a traditional setting or within the protected environment of a Growing Dome greenhouse, is a rewarding step toward a bountiful harvest. By carefully managing the key elements of moisture and humidity, light, and heat, you provide your young plants with the optimal conditions to break dormancy and thrive. Whether you choose to transplant your healthy starts or direct sow certain varieties, these foundational seed-starting principles will help you extend your growing season, practice effective succession planting, and keep your garden vibrant and productive year after year.
How to Thin Crowded Seedlings
April 4, 2021
Many seedlings grow quickly in the spring when the days get longer. Thinning seedlings is a necessity but can become slightly more difficult if you overseeded or if your old seed packets had a higher germination rate than you were expecting. In any case, overcrowding is common and seedlings will almost always benefit from careful thinning.
How to Transplant Seedlings and Direct Sowing Seeds
October 20, 2020
Transplanting seedlings and direct sowing are the two main methods of introducing plants to your small garden. Transplanting is the process of planting a baby plant, or starts, into your garden. In comparison, direct sowing is the process of planting seeds in your garden.
So Many Seeds to Sow!
May 13, 2020
It is time to get those spring and summer crops planted. The Growing Dome Community is especially excited this year to swap out winter crops for the spring season. The first aspect to consider is whether you will be direct seeding or transplanting starts.
Sowing Winter Crops in the Growing Dome
August 28, 2017
Sow your seeds in early fall to prepare for your Winter Garden: If you grow in a Growing Dome, or greenhouse, or even want to try to extend your season in an outdoor garden, the time has come to sow seeds for fall and winter gardening. If you sow in late August to early September,…
Sowing Seeds for Your Winter Crop
August 30, 2016
Sowing Seeds In Late Summer/Early Fall & Preparing For Winter “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.” Robert Louis Stevenson If you grow in a greenhouse or even if you have an outdoor garden threatened by winter snow, you should be sowing seeds for your winter crops…
Seed Germination In Your Growing Dome®
June 27, 2016
Seed Starting For Fast and Consistent Germination Rates What are seeds and how do we best “start” them to ensure consistent germination rates? Why do they sprout when they do? Understanding the fundamentals of seeds and seed germination allows for designing optimal situations and practices for successful starts for your garden. Meet Roland. He is Growing…
Planting Seeds in October
November 11, 2014
It’s October 1st, and we’re planting seeds! At the beginning of our new project in the 15′ Growing Dome, we heavily amended the soil in the outer growing beds, where we direct seeded many greens and vegetables. As we constructed a new interior bed to increase growing space with the goal of maximizing production in…
How to Start and Transplant Vegetables
October 10, 2014
Learn which vegetables transplant best in a Growing Dome, how time stacking boosts yield, and when to direct sow to avoid gaps, shock, and wasted effort.
How to Sow Your Seeds
February 25, 2011
We have talked in our previous posts about sowing a batch of cool hardy seeds for our spring crops. A few words about how to sow your seeds may be appropriate here. The first thing to note is the size of the seed you are using, as they vary quite enormously. The average depth to…
Gardening-Transplanting Tips
March 30, 2010