Pansies are a great flower for the spring garden and not hard to start from seed. They just need to be started early. I bought these Mammoth pansy seeds from William Dam Seeds, a very good company that sells untreated seeds. They have a fine selection of vegetable seeds as well as many flowers.
I have always started pansy seeds in a cool, dark environment. This year the container, which conveniently has a lid, sat in the basement for a couple of weeks until the seeds sprouted in the damp potting soil. The seed packet, however, and other sites on line suggest starting the seeds at around 20C (70F) so I guess pansies aren't very fussy. The packet of Mammoth seeds said it contained 17-20 seeds and I have 19 seedlings so the germination was excellent.
Yesterday, I transplanted them into individual peat pots. I gave them a good soak after the move, but going forward I will keep the soil just dampish to try to avoid leggy growth. Right after the transplant for a couple of days, the pots will be out of direct sunlight to let the plants settle in but then they will go on the windowsill to get as much light as possible. I will give them a little balanced slow-release fertilizer (10-10-10) that will encourage sturdy growth.
I will be able to transplant them outside in early May because they can handle a light frost. Last year, I cut the pansies back at the end of June as the days got hot, and I had a nice repeat show of flowers from August to October.
