mid-january is too early, but that's when i'm starting mine this year... same zone, deland. they transplant well, so i'll sprout them, transplant to gallons, then again to their final resting place... we're usually pretty frost free by the end of february. six weeks seems a reasonable span to worry about them.

i've already started my pepper seedlings... plan to nurse them thru the winter and grow them in containers... it's SO HARD to start pepper seeds when it's cool out, i figured, why not do it at the end of fall? 25 seedlings up so far...

From the UF planting Guide :

Follow the recommended planting date(s) listed for each vegetable. Vegetables planted "out of season" are very susceptible to many pests. Plant as early in the spring (or as late in the fall, depending on the crop) as is safely possible. Use protective covers for cold-sensitive plants.

Initial planting outside of starter plants in Central Florida - peppers Jan - March and
Aug - Sept .
- tomatoes Jan-March
and September

Knowing ill-man , he will have gorgeous veggies no matter what the time of year or the weather ! For the rest of us mere mortals , I would follow the guidelines ; at least until you feel confident about your veggie skills and have a few seasons under your belt .

Here is a link that might be useful: Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide

I put my fall tomatoes in too late from what I see now. I have a lot of 7-8 oz green tomatoes and time is running out. I transplanted 6" tall seedlings starting Sept 1st. I knew I was late when I planted because I saw Christine's tomato patch in mid August and they were 18-24" already. I'm in Deland and I've noticed the Villages are always a little cooler than here, and get earlier and later frosts. Last Spring I transplanted on Mar 1st and I could have been earlier. My question to those more experienced is how large can I let the plants get in 1 gal pots before I transplant. I read somewhere that 6' is the optimum size.
thanks john

for tomatoes I start seeds on January 1st and plant out on March 1st. Then I start seeds on July 1st and plant out on Sept 1st. And I start pepper seeds on November 1st for a March 1st plant out, since they take longer.

dclegg --- I found that the best time to start peppers is early Jan and tomatoes mid-Jan (DeLand area). This works out good because I use a heating pad to get them germinated. I start the peppers first, then the toms. This is an absolute necessity for peppers because they need 80* soil. My heating pad is old and when I bought an additional one I found that it has a built-in shut off timer (like what irons have) so you may have to buy one specific for seed germination, if you don't have one.

Michael started pepper seeds this fall that he got from existing plants (or at least some of them) so he has nothing to loose by starting some early.

Christine