Finally did my wintersowing today

I finally got around to doing some wintersowing today. Don't know how successful it is going to be. Yesterday it was 65 here and today it was 70! It is supposed to get down in the 20's the last part of next week.

Congrats on getting done. I finished the last of my perennials using 11 containers today. My hollyhocks wintersown on 1/12/11 have already germinated. Happy growing!!!!

I only planted 9 containers of perennials but may plant a few more when I get some containers.

I learned about wintersowIng in December. I was desperate for containers so I bought the store brand water in gallon jugs so that I could use them for winter sowing. The water didn't go to waste, I used it to water my tropical plants being stored in the basement for winter. I've still need 14 more containers for the annuals. I'm asking co-workers to bring in their used milk jugs.

Bobyrd!

Great going! After you water in your seeds, close those tops and keep em shut with a piece of duct tape on either side. They'll form heat inside like a little greenhouse, and the animals won't steal your seeds...

No need to open and close them after that, long as they're where the rain can water them, and the sun can shine on them...

Linda

I have got them all taped and lined up like little soldiers on my patio!

KEWL!

Bob,
I just noticed that big bag of Miracle Grow Potting SOIL next to your jugs. Just a word -- potting SOIL is not designed to be used in containers (check the fine print), because it will begin to compact hard as cement..

In the future, always use potting MIX, MIX, MIX in your containers, and for your WSing jugs...

This message was edited Feb 3, 2011 1:21 PM

Thanks, I hope mine doesn't turn to one hard lump!

I noticed that too and was going to comment about it but Gymgirl beat me to it! MG sells Potting MIX and even this year, I added some perlite in my potting mix and 1 c. starting mix.

I only have potting SOIL right now. I also have some milled spagnum (sp?!) moss and perlite. If I mix 50% soil, 25% moss and 25% perlite, do you think that will work? Or should I go get some potting MIX?

You can just leave the soil out altogether. You can use 50% peat and 50% perlite. If you check the ingredients on the potting mixes it doesn't have any soil in it at all. I'ts mainly peat, perlite and tree bark

Actually, the bag was Garden Soil- not Potting soil- I have found that MG Garden soil is very heavy and dense- I doubt if it would be good in containers at all.

Thanks, Diamond!

I accidentally bought a bag last year... I ended up mixing it with the 'mix' that was left over in the pots from the previous year.... it was the only choice i had, and it worked out OK. did not get hard as a rock. The rest got worked into my 'sand' yard around plants.

Well sounds like my wintersowing this year is going to be for naught!

ya figure, what's done is done... hope for the best.

You weren't' finished, were you? Just get a different medium and do some more seeds.

Well actually I have something sprouting in two of my containers, Lion's tails (thanks Lazlo) and narrow leaf pink coneflowers!

And I did sow three more containers today.

Isn't wsing addictive? I don't have room for all the plants I have started but I have more containers, more potting mix and more seeds, so I have to keep going until I run out of everything. LoL

I have several containers that are sprouting. The plants in a couple of them are getting kind of leggy. What if anything can I do to keep this from happening? I am afraid to pinch the tops off the little things in fear that they will just die!

I don't know that I would do anything. I'm not the expert but part of the beauty with wsing is allowing nature to take her course. What seedlings are the leggy ones?

Bob,
Could you post a pic? Have they got their 2nd set of true leaves in the jugs yet? If so, it's time to pot them into individual cups, up to their cotlyedons (nurse leaves)

It is my Lion's tail seeds and they are getting their second set of leaves. If I put them in individual pots do I plant them up to the first set of leaves?

Bobyrd -- can i ask what you are doing the individual pots for? will this be their final location, or are you doing like 4" pots before planting out in the garden??

one of the great things about WS is you no longer need to doing the various pots.... they go from WS container to their final location - whether that is in the ground/garden or a patio pot.

Gymgirl suggested I plant them into individual pots up to their nurse leaves. If I leave them in the original milk jugs do I need to pinch them back to prevent them from getting leggy.

Sorry, Bobbyrd,
I had tomato seedlings on my brain. TCS1366 is correct that the WSing process works so well because it foregoes the need to pot up stuff -- in most cases you go straight to the garden!

So, with that said, I'm going to defer to TCS1366 for answers to your future questions regarding flowers and plants.

Now tomato seedlings? THAT'S another story!

This message was edited Feb 24, 2011 11:51 AM

I have to admit... i've never 'pinched' anything. I just let them go.

and when the soil is ready, i plant out and hope for the best.

I usually have so many seedlings that if a few keel over, i dont even notice.

Ok, I'm gonna ignore them!

bob, I've never had a problem with miracle grow potting soil in my WS containers, maybe because the plants aren't left growing in the soil, but are planted out in the garden.

Mine seem to be doing fine so far. More than half of the containers are sprouting.