How to Start Borage Indoors

It’s easiest to sow borage seeds directly into the garden in a full sun location, but you can start borage indoors if you want. Starting borage indoors will give your plants a headstart and means they will bloom more quickly when the growing season starts. Borage is an easy, fast-growing, annual herb with beautiful star shaped blue or white edible flowers. While it is considered a herb, it's often grown as a flower in vegetable gardens, boage is considered a good companion plant for tomatoes, squash, and strawberries, and many other plants. It’s even supposed to deter tomato hornworms and improve the flavor of tomatoes growing nearby.

The leaves and the flowers of borage are edible with a flavor like a cucumber. Borage leaves add a great, healthy addition to our salad.

Where to Buy Seeds

You can find seeds available at Amazon. Always make sure you buy them from a reliable source to ensure the seeds are viable.

When to Sow Borage Seeds

. Start seeds indoors three to four weeks before the last frost.

. Fill plastic cups with a high quality seed starting soil that has been mixed with enough water to get it damp.

. Sow two seeds per  cup, and cover with soil.

. Water the soil carefully, and try not to disturb the seeds.

.  Keep the soil moist but not waterlogged.

. Place the pots under grow lights or by a very sunny window.

. You should start seeing seedlings stick their heads out of the ground in about 10 days.

. First, you will see a pair of shiny, wavy cotyledons appear. Later, you’ll see the true leaves emerge. These are hairy and have a matte, rough texture.

. If your seedlings are looking leggy, use a grow light. A grow light is so great for seedlings and easy to position pretty much anywhere.

. Borage seeds have a high germination rate, so you’ll likely need to thin them out.

. If you have more than one seedling into the containers, thin them out to one plant per pot when they have at least one set of true leaves.

. Just pluck out the weaker, thinner, or shorter plants and leave the strongest behind.

Hardening off Borage Seedlings

In order to give your new borage seedlings the best chance of success it is best to ‘harden them off’ prior to leaving them outside in the garden full time. About 7 days before planting your plants outdoors, help acclimate them to temperatures, sunlight, and wind. This is the process of hardening off, or gradually acclimating you new plants to outdoor conditions.These plants have spent their short lives in a warm, sunny, protected place and won't fare well if you don't expose them slowly to the elements. Hardening off’ is the vital process of getting your seedlings ready for transplanting outdoors. Just follow these simple instructions in order to give your plants the best chance of success!

Borage is resilient enough that you don’t have to worry too much as long as you take a little care when transplanting. You can transplant them into the garden when they are six to eight inches tall, and all danger of frost has passed.

Now that you know to start borage indoors, you can give it a try and add this powerful herb to your garden to enjoy all its benefits!

Please let us know your thoughts, experiences, or questions in the comments below. If you like this, you can share with your friends! 

Watch How to Start Borage Indoors Video

Big selection of Borage Seeds from Here!

Happy Gardening!

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