Hello Charles,

If you received an unrelated note to you from Sharon, please ignore it. It was sent to you in error. We are migrating to a new system, and there are some “gliches”.

To answer your question, yes you may start seeds in larger pots in order to save the work of having to move seedlings later. Seed starting medium is a sterile mix that sometimes  contains fertilizer in it. Potting soil may be a similar mix, or it may be a non-sterile soil, and it may or may not have fertilizer in it. The bag or container for the product you use will describe if it has fertilizer in it, and whether it is sterile or not.

Seedlings do not use fertilizer until they have grown a few true leaves. 

I would recommend you use a sterile mix either of potting mix or starter mix, or you can mix both together at about 50/50. Sterile mixes and clean pots help prevent fungus from growing on young seedlings, a condition known as damping off. Sterile potting mixes often have no nutritional value in them and that is why the fertilizer is important once the seeds have grown leaves. Read your product label and follow the fertilizer recommendations found there. Products with fertilizer typically will feed young plants for 6 weeks to 3 months after germination. Monitor your seedlings for signs of nutritional problems such as poor growth or yellowing leaves.

Here is an article that covers all this and more in detail:

https://extension.umn.edu/planting-and-growing-guides/starting-seeds-indoors#watering-and-fertilizing-1179613

The other issue with starting seedlings in larger pots is that you have to keep that whole pot moist and close enough to grow lights while the seedlings are small. The larger pots also take up more room and so you have more square footage devoted to the seedlings while they are small. But the choice is yours, the larger pots will just take up a little more room and be a little more work to keep thoroughly moistened while the seedlings start and grow to size.