Simplicity

Supplies on hand: 

• Seed starting trays and humidity covers (a sophisticated clear plastic lid).
• Tags for labeling the trays.
• A pencil to write on your garden markers, allegedly pencil outlasts sharpie.
• Seed starting soil or pellets. 
• A little spade or an ordinary spoon for adding soil to containers.
• Spray bottle or something to water with

Organic or Conventional?

• A dispute for the ages. Control is a fundamental tenet of home gardening, you control what you grow and where it comes from. Choose organic if this farming practice speaks to you. For home gardening I have seen brilliant success either way. I varied my seeds according to what was available, but I prefer organic seeds and soils as a matter of principle. 
• The book "Starting Seeds" addresses this in similar fashion.
• Don't Google the topic unless you're ready for a "lively" debate. Bring popcorn!

Seeds require more patience than anything else. However to take the best care of the seeds, fill a tray with soil and create a hole with a pencil tip for the seeds to fit in. 

Add seeds to the hole and loosely cover with light soil. For easy seeding water the soil before you seed. That way you don't risk overwatering. Keep the soil wet with a spray bottle or other gentle device.

Once planted, keep the seeds safe from pets, kids or cold. Warm windows are great, but until sprouts pop up warmth is more important than photosynthesis. Keep the seeds at 68° or warmer for best germination. 

Cover the trays with the humidity cover until sprouts pop up. 

Check the soil for water and wait 7-10 days. Some seeds and soil compounds will take longer to germinate, meaning seedlings take longer to push through the soil. Organic seeding soil is slower going than pellets and some seeds take weeks. Don't take it personally. This is where it pays to keep the seed packets. 

Label your trays with tags, or risk forgetting which seedlings are where, like my kids.

Listen carefully to the advice on your seed packets. 

Packet Anatomy:

1. Check the packet for a stamped date, much like the expiration date on food. It says "packaged for" and the current year should be stamped. Old seeds might not germinate and make you believe you failed at gardening. Feeling successful is important. 
2. There's always a suggested planting period. Seeds each have different requirements. For early spring projects read on to find which ones enjoy "sweater weather" and trendy lattes. 
3. Avoid planting cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes until May if you live in a cold northern area!
4. Sow seeds in loose soil, not packed soil. Seeds utilize the oxygen in air pockets.
5. Keep your seeds in warm and humid conditions. Seeds don't require photosynthesis from sunlight until sprouts reach above soil level. The moisture and temperature of the soil medium will signal the seed to germinate.

To get right to the joy: Buy packets of carrots, chives, cilantro, dill, mesclun, lettuce, chard, brussels sprouts or other green leafs, like kale. These veggies can get in the dirt earlier than most. 

• Mesclun, lettuce, and herbs can also establish well in containers without needing to transplant. 
• Carrots and brussels sprouts are not the type of seed to plant in containers since carrots require very deep roots and brussels sprouts are tall and bushy plants that sweeten with the fall frost.

Read your packet first: Chard, for example is best planted after a 24 hour germination period. 

• Unveil the mystery of germination. Wet a paper towel and wrap your seeds in the moist towel. Mason jars and ziplock bags work as germination containers for the towel and seed.
• Follow on to the terminology page for germination and pollination.