spring is sprouting

As I mentioned a while back in our post about our backyard plans, I have been very excited to get our seeds started for our new and improved yard and garden! Even though there is still snow on the ground (and sometimes falling from the sky...boo!) we are hopeful and looking forward to the day when it's all gone! It helps to have little green sprouts starting to show in the basement where we have started our first batch of veggies and flowers! 

Unfortunately, we don't have a great place in the basement for a "sunny" all the time spot as is recommended for most seeds. Our basement is just an underground room with tiny windows at the top of the walls. I looked online for a solution to this lack of light and found an option that only cost us about $25 from Home Depot (fixture plus two light bulbs). 

   

This is definitely not going to be a permanent fixture in our basement as it intrudes into a large portion of our "finished basement" but it's perfect for what we need for the next 8ish weeks. The chain makes the light adjustable as the plants grow and it's big enough that it covers two of the seedling starter trays. 

I've never started seeds before so when I went to the store to get a "starter kit" I looked at all my options and this seemed like the best one. It has 72 cells and it self waters for up to 10 days. I still check on the moisture level every once in a while but it's nice to know that we can leave and it's still going to be ok for a couple of days! 

So far I have started Tomato, Onion, Eggplant, Sage, Rosemary and two types of flowers that we will be planting with our veggies for maximum pollination, etc. The starter kit comes with grid sheets so you don't forget what you planted where! Aren't they clever? 

It's almost like Spring has sprung seeing some little sprouts popping out of the soil! They look so fragile now but it's going to be so fun to see them grow and eventually get transplanted to our backyard! 

Has anyone else started their seeds? Any wise words for this newbie? Please, oh please, impart your wisdom!