Borage Germination

Purchase a packet of borage seeds from a local nursery or online seed dealer. Read the back of the seed packet label to determine the stated time of germination.

Contact your local gardening extension to find out the date of the last predicted frost in your location. Take the stated time of germination given on the seed packet and count backward from the date of the last frost to determine the starting date for germination.

Pour good-quality potting soil --- ideally organic --- into biodegradable peat pots. Leave a quarter-inch space at the top of the potting soil.

Sow two to four borage seeds onto the top layer of potting soil. Cover the borage seeds with a quarter-inch layer of potting soil.

Transport the peat pots to a sunny, south-facing window that receives six to eight hours of sunlight every day. Place a shallow-lipped tray under the peat pots to catch any water runoff.

Fill a plastic spray bottle with water. Water the borage seeds with a light mist to avoid displacing potting soil lying over the seeds. Continue to water the borage seeds two or three times per week, or as soon as the top of the soil begins to dry.

Loosely cover the peat pots with plastic wrap.

Remove the plastic wrap when the borage seeds begin to peek above the potting soil. Continue to water the borage seedlings regularly as the soil begins to dry.

Cut weaker, 3- to 5-inch-tall borage seedlings from the peat pots at soil level, using small scissors. Allow the strongest borage seedling to remain in each pot. Repeat cutting the weaker borage seedlings for each peat pot until you have one seedling per pot.

Enrich the garden soil outdoors with organic compost such as peat moss or leaf mold. The planting site must receive at least five to six hours of sunlight per day. Use one to two cups of compost --- leaf mold or peat moss --- per square foot of garden soil. Mix the compost into the garden bed with a shovel.

Dig planting holes deep enough to accommodate the peat pots with a garden spade. Transplant the borage plants outdoors in the prepared planting holes when the last frost has passed.

Provide the borage plants with regular watering. Warmer weather may necessitate increasing the rate of watering from one or two times per week to two or three times per week.