Our Tuesday series today aims to answer a gardening question that we receive quite often from many teenagers, their parents and even their grandparents.

They all want to know if it's better to grow fruits and vegetables from actual plants or if they should start with seeds to begin with. This is often a common dilemma for novice gardeners. Many families and individuals these days love the idea of raising their own organic fruits and vegetables both as a fun hobby and a source of natural, organic food.

To answer this question thoroughly and to provide an excellent resource for new and current gardeners of all ages, we turn to our friends at SavvyGardening.com to tap into their years of expertise!

Jessica Walliser, Niki Jabbour and Tara Nolan are three "master gardeners" and authors of many insightful and informative books on gardening. These ladies have made it their careers to help others achieve success with their own gardening ventures and goals.

Without further ado, here are Jabbour's recommendations on this topic, from the article "3 Reasons to Start Your Own Seeds Indoors" on SavvyGardening.com. Be sure to also visit their website and even read their great books to learn more!

3 REASONS TO START YOUR OWN SEEDS INDOORS

No. 1: Diversity

Buying seeds from mail order catalogs or local nurseries, and then starting the seeds yourself, allows you to choose from a much wider selection of varieties. For example, there are thousands of tomatoes available to gardeners through seed companies. But, if you rely on your local garden centers for your seedlings, you'll be choosing from just a few dozen varieties, at best. Plus, I like to grow a lot of global and unusual vegetables, which can be difficult to find locally. So, if I want my cucamelons, Yellow Pear tomatoes, Lemon cucumbers, and purple tomatillos, I need to start them myself.

No. 2: Save money

I have a large garden and buying transplants for all the crops that I want to grow would cost me big bucks. Starting my own seeds has proven to be very cost effective and saves me hundreds of dollars each year. Obviously, there was some initial investment for equipment and supplies; grow-lights and containers, as well as annual items like potting soil and seeds. To save money, I built my own grow light stand, using inexpensive shop light fixtures, fitted with fluorescent bulbs. However, new or small space gardeners, don't need grow-lights for seed starting and may want to try sowing a small number of seeds in a bright, south-facing windowsill.

No. 3: Satisfaction

There is no better cure for spring fever than sowing some seeds indoors. By the time February rolls around, I'm ready to start planting seeds for slow growing plants like artichokes, geraniums, pansies, leeks, and onions. The process of growing plants from seed to harvest, or seed to bloom in the case of flowers, is immensely satisfying.

3 REASONS TO BUY TRANSPLANTS

No. 1: Quick and easy

When your garden beds or containers are prepped and ready for planting, it's ridiculously quick and easy to just buy the seedlings that you need. You sacrifice variety for convenience, but busy gardeners will appreciate the high quality, ready-to-plant seedlings found at their local garden centres.

No. 2: Location

It can be challenging to find a good spot for your seed starting set-up. Initially, those pots or trays don't take up too much room, but as the plants grow, they may out-grow the original space, or need to be re-potted into larger containers. And space isn't the only consideration; if you can't provide ample light (with grow-lights or a sunny window), starting your own seeds will be a frustrating waste of time and money.

No. 3: Time

Growing your own seedlings takes time. Most vegetables and annual flowers need 6 to 8 weeks of growth before they can be hardened off and moved into the garden. If you don't have time to care for the growing seedlings or perhaps have a spring vacation planned, than you're better off buying transplants.

A FEW WORDS ABOUT DIRECT SEEDING

It's important to note that some plants should be direct seeded in the garden and not started indoors or bought as transplants. This can be due to a variety of factors; maybe they're so quick to grow that they don't require a head start, or perhaps they don't take well to being transplanted.

Whatever the reason, be sure to read your seed packets or seed catalogues carefully for advice on starting your chosen vegetables and flowers. Plants that prefer to be direct seeded include root crops, annual poppies, nasturtiums, corn, beans, peas, and quick growing greens like spinach and arugula.

Readers, remember that these ladies are true professionals and authors, so take their advice to heart and enjoy your journey into one of life's great hobbies, gardening!

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Markus Spiske at Unsplash