A week or two ago I planted some pomegranate seeds from a fruit I bought at the grocery store.

When I came into my office this morning, the first sprouts had emerged:

I started pomegranate trees from seed back in Grenada but gave away most of the trees when I moved, so we’re starting again.

You can see my complete guide to starting pomegranate trees from seed in this post from last year.

One thing I did here that I didn’t do there was adding a heat mat beneath the seedling trays.

I got some old cafeteria trays from a friend and I use them to catch leaks under my seedling flats, but under that white tray is a black heat mat. You can see it peeking out by the extension cord.

I bought this one on Amazon and it works quite well. It has enough surface area for a lot of small plants. On the other side (beyond the peace lily to the left), I am starting fig cuttings in pots, also on the same mat.

Bottom heat is a big help in seed germination and in starting cuttings. If it’s cool outside, a heat mat is a valuable boost. I had to use one to start moringa and coffee seedlings in North Florida during the winter and early spring. If I had to wait for proper seed-starting conditions, I would have been way behind on my plant nursery business.

These pomegranate seedlings will get potted up when they are a few inches tall. Before then I may have to get a grow light if they get too spindly with just the light coming in my office window.

For now, though, I’m just happy to see them showing up.