Includes bibliographical references (pages 364-371) and index.

Section One: Starting Seeds Indoors -- Why start your own? -- First the seeds -- Choose your medium -- Containers -- Sowing seeds early indoors -- Germination -- What seedlings need -- Transplanting into new containers -- Growing on -- Light -- Problems -- Section Two: Moving Plants Outdoors -- Soil preparation -- Mapping out the garden -- Hardening off -- The art of planting out -- Cold frames, hotbeds, and cloches -- Care of the young transplant -- Direct seeding -- Treating plants with seaweed extract -- The fall garden -- Insect and animal pests -- The young seed-planter -- Section Three: Special Techniques and Situations -- Starting seeds in the greenhouse -- Growing vegetables in the greenhouse -- Starting wildflowers from seed -- Starting trees and shrubs from seed -- Section Four: Saving Seeds and Making Further Plans -- Why save seeds? -- How seeds are formed -- Choosing seeds to save -- Collecting and preparing seeds -- Storing seeds -- Viability of seeds -- Seed-saving tips for specific plants -- Further challenges -- The garden diary -- . Seed catalogs -- Seed exchanges -- Seed banks.

Describes the advantages of starting seeds indoors, discusses containers, growing media, light, and water, and tells how to transplant young plants into the garden.