First seeds in, first seeds up

I got the onions and violas into a flat of starter mix last weekend.  This weekend they are pretty, green, little shoots. I also did two pots of micro greens and those are up as well. They need another set of leaves before I can use them, but they are growing quickly.
The basement has been staying on the cool side, less than 60 degrees on some checks.  I have closed off my propagation room to try and retain some of the furnace heat.  I also have the seed heating mat under the onions and domed lids over all the germination pots to keep them warm and moist.  So far, so good.  I talked to my husband about putting a folding door on this room so I can do the best job possible for keeping the room warm enough.  It is definitely colder this winter than it was last year.
The next seed order is ready to go.  I have to wait for pay day to send this one out.  Seeds always are signs of spring to me.

Early seeds

I am not ready to order all my seeds...yet...but I have been looking at some to mail in soon.  Things you need to start early if you really want to do them yourself:

Onions:  I am convinced that the best onions come from seeds. We grow long day onions in Wisconsin, for growing during our long days of summer. Short day is for warmer zones, think winter there when days are shorter. Check the time to maturity, but I put my little onion seedlings out in April after starting them in February

Lisianthus:  This beautiful flower takes a long time to bloom and January is not too early to start it.  It is a very tiny seed, a very tiny seedling and doesn't seem to grow very fast.

Herbs:  If you want some indoor herbs, start them now for an indoor crop.  They will need supplemental light.

Greens:  At least start thinking about them.  If you have a cold frame set up in your garden, you may be putting some seedlings in there the end of February or March, depending on the temperatures.  I still don't have my cold frame, but I am thinking of how to utilize that nice, sunny spot on the south side this year, possibly some straw bales and a Lexan cover. TBA

Pansies and violas:  These are cool season crops and if you want to grow your own, you have to start early.

Look at the seed packs and the days to harvest.  Count back to when you want to harvest to when you need to start.  If it is over 100 days, you are probably looking at an early start.