Do you want to grow herb seeds in Iowa, but don’t know when to start them?
Starting herb seeds is not as easy as it seems.
Here’s why:
- Herb Seeds must be consistenly watered, receive at least 8 hours of sunlight a day, & be kept at room temperature of at least 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
So if you don’t consistently water them they won’t germinate. If they aren’t in a room that is at least 70 degrees Fahrenheit they won’t sprout. And if it receives 8 hours of sunlight the plant itself won’t grow.
- Because Iowas’s growing season is not long enough, herb seeds cannot be sowed outside and should only be started indoors.
Because of this, I’m going to teach you the ideal time to start herb seeds indoors in Iowa:
When to Start Herb Seeds Indoors
Depending on the type of Herbs, it takes roughly 24-180 days to grow herbs from seed indoors before you can transplant them into your garden.
The approximate date of when you should start your herb seeds indoors can be found by:
- Finding the last average frost date HERE
- And then subtract the specific number of days from it depending on the plant you want to grow.
You can also find the average last frost date for most major cities in the below chart that I have created:
To help ensure the greatest success of your herb seeds germinating you should:
- Use a heat mat to ensure the gardening pot remains at 70 degrees Fahrenheit
- Use a grow light to control how much light your herb seeds receive
- Water your seeds with a spray bottle to ensure your seeds are not overwatered
It should also be noted that you will not want to introduce your herb plants into your garden until 2 weeks after your last frost or else your plant will potentially die or not bear herbs.
If you want to learn WHEN to start ANY Herb Seed in Iowa, head over to HERE and just type in the herbs you want to grow.
