Shes about too... #48

I have not ordered from them, but wow, they have some good prices!

They sure do, LK. Watchdog says they're wholesale only but according to their website and the email I received, they are not. I just can't use 105 plugs of any particular plant and their FAQ's indicate a minimum order of 4 flats without incurring a $25 surcharge. Holy cow, 420 plugs is a bunch of plants! I'm interested in the 105 flats of rooted mixed Coleus and Calibrachoa "Million Bells" but like I said with just those two, there's no way I can use 210 plugs.

If anyone's interested in going in together, I'll be glad to call and ask how rigid their minimum order requirements actually are. If they do impose a 4 flat order, what other plants would you like to split? Million Bells are secondary for me since I can buy a boatload of them locally but I've gotta have some Coleus different from the usual ones.

Before I make the call, does anybody else have an opinion?

I bought flats last year from a different source, they come as plugs.. but I have some still growing here in the basement garden.. what other kinds of plants are they offering? I am interested in a joint purchase.
Linda, did you get your package yet>?

Fruity I bought over 1000 cuttings from them the first year I raised coleus. They arrived in great shape and were pretty easy to deal with. Never got anything rooted from them though. They are pretty rigid in the ordering though. They guy I talked to worked with me a little on the cuttings as far as letting me take 50 of each instead of 100 of each, but I still had to get the minimum one way or the other.

Debra, yes I did, it came day before yesterday. Sorry I did not let you know! Thanks so much!

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1081168/

Here is the link to the Easter basket swap!
Come and join us there!

After my Winter fiasco with cuttings, I'm more inclined to get plugs. That's a shame though none of yours rooted. Wonder what was up with that?

Here's their link, Debra. See what you like: http://ncfarmsinc.com/store/index.php
We'll just wait and see if we get enough people to order four flats (420 plugs).

Will check back in tonight after class. Everybody have a good one!

Do you want to order the rooted coleus, or the unrooted? We can get a lot more if we get the cuttings not rooted?

Gotcha, Neener. That's an extremely low loss out of 1000...wow. You'll have to share your growing tips.

We could get cuttings, LK. My growing conditions and technique inside over Winter were just not good to the Coleus.
I'd love to have an assortment.

Have any of you rooted Verbena or Impatiens? If we get an order together, which plants do you all like?

I have managed to keep a few of my favorite impatiens alive this winter, they are blooming right now.. I would want impatiens, coleus, or begonias, I havn't been to the thread yet, been making up bags of seeds. Planting, repotting etc.
Good Grief! I found 8 more huge boxes of dead heads from my gardens and my wanderings. Including the seeds I have bought, traded for and been gifted of, I am going out of my mind.

Fruit Loop impatiens are really easy from seed. Besides lettuce they are the only thing that I've been able to grow from seed. Reminds me that I should start some of them today for my fence. Raining and blowing here so I can take the day off.

So rvnsbrk, you get all the "nice" days off? ;D

You got it Joyce. :)

Hey, I thought my job was yuckyyyyy....LOL

Well, i got out to clear some of the dead stuff off and leaves off the flower gardens today after work, I am pooped. I decided instead of having a huge compost pile out in the alley, I am going to use the old big canvas pop up leaf bag holder thingie, since it has holes in the bottom, and I can roll it around to mix it and stuff. I am going to spread the compost over the beds tommorrow since I have the day off, Rain or no Rain.. I am doing it.

Ewwww! I hate being rained on, always have even as a kid, when the other kids use to play in the rain in their swimsuits I didn't want anything to do with it. Compost thingy sounds like a good idea.

rvnsbrk, what do you do? My Mom use to work in a resort. Worked every weekend and all summer then when the weather turned awful she would be out of work all winter, I want a job just the opposite! Work winter, play summer.

A beautiful day here but didn't get home in time do to the fun stuff. I have so many bulbs and daylilies to get planted it is just stupid already. I think that is all I am doing tomorrow until time to leave for our credit union dinner.

I have been up since 4am on Friday I probably ought to go to bed....just thought Debra might be up.

If anyone is interested there is an iris swap on the iris forum.

Joyce I have a landscaping business. So I get to be out all winter and work all summer. I am trying to cut back, but my 75 year old partner just won't slow down. I think he is afraid if he stops he'll never get started again. :))

Neener

I can understand the stopping and never get started again....LOL You sure have one hard career. Do you still love to garden? I always thought if I turned my business into a career, it might not be so fun.

Windy, dark and cold here, gonna rain anytime. Ughhhh.

I wondered if having a business would take some of the fun out of it. In our Master Gardners group we have a couple who has 2 huge greenhouses that they sell plants at farmers market (course he farms also and takes veggies). But besides the commerical side she doesn't do much gardening at all. Wouldn't want that job, they are up at 4am to get to all the farmers markets in time....yuck I do that now and if I retire that is not happening any more.

Glad you figured out what I was saying in the post since I wanted to say turn my hobby (not business). LOL

Got some lilies planted and some red ruffle caladiums. I have a ton to do but not much energy today. Started getting my box ready for a swap.

Daffs have big bloom heads but no blooms yet.

You don't have energy cause you haven't slept much for two days! Got some Lilies planted today too and hope to receive my Caladium order from Bill in a week or two. They're a mixed bag of 100 and you or anyone else on here is welcome to a grab bag. I won't be able to plant them anyway til it warms up a bit more, although I was so tempted to plant the ones I already have in pots today and bring them inside to try to give them a head start, same pots they'll stay in all Summer. A neighbor's already planted hers and is keeping them in her heated basement.

It was freezing last night, down to 29 and won't be much warmer tonight and 100% chance of rain tomorrow. Just came in a while ago when the wind started whipping. Yesterday I covered the three pots of Daff's and Tulips on the side porch with big trash bags and wrapped them in blankets...lol I dunno if I had to do that or not but didn't want to take a chance the buds would get nipped. Haven't had Tulips in forever, participated in the bulb co-op last year and ordered a few I thought were neat. The foliage on two is so cool and contorted with either red stripes or red dots. Tulips in the ground haven't started to bud yet so they'll just have to fend for themselves.

Can Caladiums grow outside in a zone 6b or do they have to be taken up and replanted every spring?

You would probably have to dig them up for the winter. It says they are Tropicals and Tender Perennials.

Hardiness:
USDA Zone 9a: to -6.6 °C (20 °F)
USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 °C (25 °F)
USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 °C (30 °F)
USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 °C (35 °F)
USDA Zone 11: above 4.5 °C (40 °F)


Sun Exposure:
Partial to Full Shade





http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/186121/

Thanks for that, LK.

I'm one Zone warmer than you are, Marti. You'd need to clip the foliage and lift the bulbs before your 1st frost in the Fall and replant them in Spring after your last chance of frost has passed, unless you opt to start them inside. They're in the Elephant Ear family and are grown for the showy foliage. Here's a pot I grew on the side porch last year. Pic is in August and the leaves grew at least twice as large before October. The bulbs are easy to store in bags of peat moss or cedar shavings in a closet or an area that doesn't freeze. They love water during their growing season and mine were in semi-shade til late afternoon. If you forget to water, they'll let you know it's time when the leaves start to droop over but do recover quickly, usually in less than an hour. Would you like to try a grab bag when mine come?

Can I grow them in pots and just bring the pots in for the winter? If you have some extra, I'd like to try them.

How do you want to do it?

Marti

Hello again, Susan that is a beautiful plant. I have 4 small ones rooted and hope i can keep them alive long enough to re pot and put on patio.
Finished with the first load of mulch and about half of the second load. Anyway the worst is over. In the back yard, I dug up all the small plants along with all the grass and weeds trying to take over in the largest flower bed. Of course digging up plants makes many more when divided.. Still have some Iris left over, either yellow, deep purple, or purple with white. Had them separated, then as I was planting, I forgot which pile was what color. Showing bed during digging. Will take more than 1 pic.

Another part of same bed.

One more

Now the finished mulched and re planted bed. LOL in 3 parts.

Middle of bed.

last corner.

Well you are not going to believe this, but my hubby agreed to sink the pond form I have had in the basement filled with potting soil and plants, so we both worked on it and then he dug up and turned over the bean patch, potatoe patch and tomatoe patch. I am madly in Love with my Joe, he is gonna let me have some fish! LOL
Joyce, I thought I was the only one who stayed up all night.. I stayed up all night a couple nights ago, and then passed out in the chair last night. My Elizabeth brug from JT has bloomed.

This shows the entire bed but so far away it really doesn't show it as pretty as it is.
Have 2 other long beds in back yard, and 3 in front yard plus the length of the house is planted and mulched. Still have trees and angel Trumpets to mulch, but will get it done next week if weather isn't wet.

Faye how wonderful your gardens look! I did get 90 percent rooting and success with your brug cuttings. You are the bomb!
I talked to Bonnie last night. She doesn't get online much. She is still unemployed, but has her resume out everywhere. Hope she gets on at a gardening center somewhere. She has been having fun in her basement Garden all winter. That is all for now...time for me and Joe to sooth our aching muscles in front of the TV, I opted out of going to the Date Movie, we are watching one called Moon.

Good for you Debra. I have always wanted a little pond, but don't have a good place for it, not if it means more digging in this hard red clay.

Debra, thanks for the update on Bonnie. Please let her know she is missed. She is so good sharing her much knowledge about brugs. Do wish she would stop in often just to say hello.

Hope you and Joe have a wonderful night together, you have earned it. Ray is unable to help me at all outside, but he certainly does his part inside. He is so good, so kind and so loving. His back and foot are not getting better. Like you Debra, I have a keeper.

Enjoy your movie, Debra, then rest your tired bones. You and happ have been night owls burning the candle at both ends. Are you going to stock your new pond with Koi?

If you have a place inside, Marti, that receives bright indirect light and has high humidity, I think they should be OK indoors. I'll let you know when my order arrives and will send you a box, you don't owe me anything in return :)

I'll do the same for you, Faye, since you only have a few. Your gardens look like pictures in a magazine! It's amazing how much work you've accomplished in only a week. I'm so sorry Ray isn't any better. I had hoped with his new Doctor and elevated shoe he would have a better report. Please tell him I said 'hi'...give him a hug and big smack on the cheek for me :)

Thanks. I did pretty good with plants in the bathroom over the winter. I can try them there. It stays warm and moist due to showers.