(Trash into treasure story.)
Dollar tree seed starter pots fit perfectly with the sauce container lids you typically get with take out. They make a snug lid that seems spill proof and can be reused later as saucers for the pots.
So I made these little seed starter kits as game prizes (congrats!), and I labeled them with a short url that redirected you here.
The seeds you will be growing were harvested from my very own basil plants last fall (2023). The variety in your kit is written on the inside of the lid ("G" for Genovese basil, or "THAI").
The lids can be used as mini-greenhouses to help the seeds sprout, and later as saucers.
Keep your seeds moist and warm - ideally try to keep a strong source of light close to the soil, and germinate them in an indoor greenhouse and/or close to a heat source. Basil germinates pretty fast but it will need a decent amount of constant moisture to thrive in its early days- that's why a greenhouse or dome environment is ideal until true leaves appear. There is about a dozen seeds in your pot to increase your odds, but if they all sprout I recommend you trim or pluck the extra to leave only 1 or 2 plants.
True leaves are the leaves that appear after the cotyledons (circled in blue on the images below). The role of cotyledons (or seed leaves) is to start photosynthesis to to fuel root growth. Note the difference in shape. Once true leaves appear, the seed leaves will usually die and fall off.
Genovese Basil grown in home hydroponics system with cotyledons circled in blue.
Thai Basil grown in home hydroponics system with cotyledons circled in blue.
Thai basil (right):
germination time: 5-14 days
ideal temperature: 70-85ºF/21-29°C
Genovese basil (left):
germination time: 4-10 days
ideal temperature: min. 65°F/18°C
germination will be considerably faster with bottom heat
germination will be considerably faster with bottom heat
