Guide to Direct Sowing Seeds (Why and When to Skip the Transplants!)
by Steven Biggs
Why Direct Sow Seeds?
Ever had transplants that put on the brakes after you move them to the garden?
It’s disappointing.
But a big transplant isn’t always better than a wee seed.
Sometimes, it’s better to plant seeds straight into the garden.
This is called direct sowing, also called direct seeding or direct planting.
This post tells you how to direct sow, best crops for direct sowing—and simple ways to sow seeds in a home garden.
What is Does Direct Sow Mean?
Direct sowing is when we sow seeds—plant seeds—directly in the garden.
This is instead of starting seeds indoors and then move them to the garden later—known as growing “transplants.”
Why Direct Sow Vegetable Seeds?
There are many reasons to direct-sow vegetables.
Here are a few reasons:
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Easier (there's no need to care for seedlings indoors)
Less expensive (no need for potting soil or containers)
Less environmental footprint (yeah, your coir-based and peat-based potting soils have an environmental footprint)
Saves indoor seed-starting space for crops that really need to be started indoors
No need to “harden off” young seedlings before planting them in the garden
Some crops don’t transplant well…and don’t bounce back well from transplanting
When to Direct Sow Seeds
It’s tempting to start direct sowing as soon as the soil thaws in the spring. But it’s often best to wait a bit. Moisture and temperature are two things to consider as you decide when to direct sow your seeds.
Moisture
If the soil is really wet, it can be difficult to get it ready for direct seeding.
The soil might stick to your tools, or might be clumpy and hard to spread around.
Another reason not to work in your garden when the soil is still very wet is that it’s easy to compact the soil—which messes up drainage and makes conditions less suited to your crops.
Temperature
The ideal temperature varies by crop. But in general, when things are still really cold and wet, there’s more chance your seeds will rot before they start to grow. Soil in raised beds warms up more quickly.
In this guide to when to start seeds indoors I also give talk about when to direct seed some crops.
Direct Sowing isn’t Always the Best Choice
Direct seeding isn’t the best choice for all crops, or in all situations. Here are a few things to consider:
In areas with a short growing season, crops that take a long time to mature are usually grown from transplants.
Slugs and other bugs can devastate small, direct-sown seedlings as they emerge…whereas a larger transplant might get through some insect damage.
During hot summer weather, seed germination can be spotty (see below for a summer seed-sowing hack). So crops that we direct sow in the spring are sometimes started indoors and then transplanted during hot summer weather.
In low-lying area, the garden soil might be too wet to direct sow seeds in the spring.
Here’s one more: You’re new to gardening and won’t know the difference between emerging direct-seeded crops and the weed seedlings!
How to Direct Sow Seeds
Before sowing seeds, prepare the soil.
Start by preparing the soil ahead of time. When sowing seeds, we want to break up any crust on top of the soil surface, and break up bigger chunks of soil. That way, germinating seeds don’t hit roadblocks.
(Yes, there’s a whole body of work out there on no-dig techniques—and there is a time and place for this…but if you want the best results when direct sowing, prepare the soil.)
Planting Depth
Use the size of the seed as a guide to planting depth. Seed packets usually recommend a depth too.
Plant the seed about twice as deep as it is wide. Too shallow is better than too deep.
But don't feel as if you need to measure and be precise.
If you’re planting seeds into trenches, you can make well-spaced trenches using a garden rake that has pieces of pipe on it.
Like most things in gardening (and life), direct sowing isn't an exact science.
Trench for Sowing Seeds
If you direct-sow seeds in rows, make a trench with your trowel or the corner of a hoe.
Then, place your vegetable seeds into the trench, and cover with soil.
OR, make your trenches by fitting pieces of pipe onto a garden rake! (See the photo.)
Poke Seeds in the Soil (Planting Seeds Simplified!)
This is low-tech and might be laughable to a commercial grower—but in a home-garden setting, can be a simple approach to direct sow seeds!
I drop large seeds into place, and then just poke them into the soil. Then I scuff the soil to fill the holes.
Poking works well for larger seeds that you can easily see:
Poking large seeds into the soil is a simple way of planting seeds.
Peas
Beans
Beets
Swiss chard
Squash
Zucchini
If you’re planting a whole block with seeds, as I like to do with beets and Swiss chard, you can do what I call the “scatter-and-poke” method. Scatter seeds to approximately the spacing you want—and then poke them into the soil. Scuff soil to fill in holes.
(Gardening is a great cure for perfectionism, and the scatter-and-poke approach dispenses with all notions of perfection in a garden!)
Broadcast and Cover
You can sprinkle small seeds such as these carrot seeds by hand, and then cover with soil.
If you’re filling a block or wide row with small seeds (e.g. carrot or lettuce), sprinkle by hand, and then cover with soil.
You might wonder, “Where do I get the soil I’m covering the seed with?” Rake aside some garden soil before you sprinkle your seed in place—and replace it over top of the seed afterwards.
Broadcast and Rake!
I’m always interested in methods that make my life simpler. And raking aside soil before I broadcast seed is a bother.
So I simply broadcast the seed, and then use an up-and-down motion with a hand rake to work some of those seeds into the soil.
Note: There will be some seeds that aren’t at an ideal depth. That’s OK. I’m a home gardener—not a commercial grower. I just seed more heavily to compensate.
Direct Sowing Hacks
Using a broadfork to make straight rows.
Folded paper. Forget the seed-dispensing gizmos for small seed. Fold a sheet of paper in half. Pour seed onto the folded sheet. Now, use a pencil or a nail to dispense individual seeds off the end of this folded sheet. Low tech, yes—but works well.
Broadfork. When my daughter, Emma, wanted side-by-side trial rows of a number of crops, she used the broadfork to make a tidy set of trenches. (The broadfork is normally used to loosen soil…but this works nicely!)
Seed tape. Seeds embedded in a strip of biodegradable paper. Yeah, a bit gimmicky. I don’t use this. But if you’re gardening with kids, or you have shaky hands and can’t easily dispense seed, it can be useful.
Using boards to keep the soil moist for direct seeding in the summer.
Pelleted seed. Small seeds bulked out with a clay coating. Like seed tape, you pay more per seed. But again, could be useful if you’re direct seeding with kids, or you’re having trouble coping with smaller seeds.
Boards. Yup, low-tech boards over summer-sown small seeds can be a life saver. In summer heat, soil can quickly form a crust that seedling have difficulty breaching. But a board over the soil during the germination window keeps the soil underneath moist. No crust.
Web trays. As soon as squirrels see freshly turned soil in my garden, they’re eager to disinter seeds. It’s infuriating. Who would have thought there’s a higher purpose for those horrid plastic webbed trays that the horticulture industry so loves! Inverted web trays over top of your directly sown seeds keep digging varmints at bay.
Direct Seeding by Crop
Take that, squirrels!
Leafy Greens. I grow transplants of leafy green crops such as lettuce, spinach, and Swiss chard. I also direct-sow seeds into the garden.
Why both ways?
So I have a succession of harvests.
(It is also insurance. If weather or pests cause less successful results one way, I have a backup!)
Root Crops. I direct sow all my carrots, parsnips, and beets. These crops can all be direct-sown in the garden early. And they don’t respond well to root disturbance.
“Fruit” Veg. For those fruits that we insist on calling veg—tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant—I grow everything by transplants because I’m in a cold climate and I extend the harvest window with transplants.
Vine Crops. The vine crops in the squash and cucumber clans don’t respond well to root disturbance. So direct sowing is always a good strategy.
(But, like the leafy greens, I hedge my bets and both direct sow and start a few transplants.)
Top Direct Seeding Tip
If conditions get really dry just as your seeds are starting to grow, tender young leaves and roots can dry out quickly…and it’s game over.
Keep the soil well watered!
FAQ Direct Sowing
What vegetables can be direct sown?
Direct sow root crops such as beet, carrot, parsnip, radish, and turnip.
Direct sow leafy greens including chard, kale, lettuce, mizuna, and spinach.
Direct seed legumes such as beans and peas.
Do I need to thin direct-seeded crops?
That depends on how much seed you use. In commercial production, growers often use precision-seeding devices so that the seeds are perfectly spaced. So no need to thin. But that’s approach isn’t always practical in a home-garden setting where we’re dealing with smaller, irregularly shaped spaces.
My approach is to direct sow with lots of seed, and then thin out extra plants while the plants are still small. So, as I thin out young spinach plants, I have baby salad greens for supper!
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