Spring flowering bulbs will soon start to push their heads through the thawing soil.

Longer days and warmer nights mean it is once again time to turn our attention toward gardening. With so many plant varieties to choose from, it can be difficult to find what you want at garden centers and hardware stores.

Consider starting your favorite plants from seed indoors. Growing healthy, green transplants is not hard if you start with good seed, lots of light and a little patience.

Here are a few tips to help:

Begin with good plant selection. Not all plants are easily grown from seed. Choose those plants that are known to do well. Plants such as marigold, ageratum, annual phlox, black-eyed Susan, coneflower, cosmos, gazania, gomphrena, nicotiana, periwinkle, scabiosa, salvia, sweet alyssum, tithonia, verbena and zinnia all do well from seed. Likewise, vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, peppers, melons, squash, cucumbers and eggplants all lend themselves nicely to being started indoors.

Be sure to use fresh seed that was purchased this year. If you have seeds left over from last season or even the year before, do not expect great results, especially if the seeds were not stored properly.

Choose a good location for starting seeds. The location should be out of the way of everyday living but stay warm during the day and cool at night. You can still have success even if you do not have a sunny picture window facing south. I prefer to grow my seeds under artificial light. Contact K-State Research and Extension if you would like free plans and instructions for a seed-starting light stand constructed from polyvinyl chloride tube and fluorescent lights. If you provide the right conditions, you can grow compact plants that are strong and healthy.

Seeds can be started in a variety of containers. Use paper or Styrofoam cups with drain holes punched in the bottom, commercial peat pots or seed-starting flats. They all work well. Fill the containers two-thirds full with a soilless potting mix. Place several seeds in each and cover them lightly with more mix.

Water gently and cover the trays with plastic to reduce water loss. Keep the seeds warm and moist; they germinate best at temperatures between 75 and 80 degrees. After germination, gradually drop temperatures to 65 to 70 degrees.

Move the newly emerging plants under lights or near a sunny window. If using artificial light, use cool white fluorescent bulbs and keep the lights suspended 1 to 2 inches above the top of the plants. Raise the light fixture as the plants grow. For best growth and development, leave the lights on 24 hours a day.

Apply water mixed with a water-soluble fertilizer, as needed. Follow the fertilizer’s label directions for seedling plants. If there are no specific directions, cut the full strength rate by half. Soilless potting mixes can require two to three feedings each week.

Thin plants, leaving one strong seedling per container. Use an oscillating fan to keep the foliage dry and build stem strength. The week before transplanting, prepare seedlings for outdoors. Lower the room temperature, reduce watering, and/or cut back on both. In the last few days, move the plants to an outdoor location during the day and inside at night, if possible.

— Bruce Chladny is horticulture agent at K-State Research and Extension-Douglas County. For more information, call him at 843-7058 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.