What Have You Wintersown So Far?? (PAGE 2)

Holy cow Carolyn. Weren't you going to your son's or something. I like the idea with the six-paks. that would take the replanting so much easier. I can't remember if I have any left. If I do they are in a large 33 gal garbage bag on the open deck by the shed -- under a lot of snow. I may trek out there and look although I think I am done with winter sowing for now. My New Zealand delph's have germinated (indoors under aerogarden lights). I can hardly wait to see how my WS stuff works when it warms up. Still holding in the teens for temp. But the clear blue skies and sunshine take the bite out of that. It seems to work here that clear skies mean lower temps.

Awesome!

I do like the WS idea of putting 6 packs into baggies. How tidy is that!?

I used several today to start different varieties of marigolds in, but I am not sealing them up.

You remind me how far behind I feel, yet there are so many seedlings out there I am already out of space when I think about it. :D

I sowed some of the R. 'Cherry Brandy' last year but they did not bloom. I had hoped they were a true reddish color. Someone gave me a plant and the flower was not what I expected.

Hope everyone's feeling April coming on!!!

I did the Cherry Brandy also, Amanda, and mine were more the color maroon than red.

Teri - I am not going to Holly's swap :( I wish I was. The swap at your house was so much fun! If you want, I can send some seedlings your way.

Mary - I still am going to my son's tonight for dinner. Made oatmeal scotchies yesterday to take over with me. I just need to stop home and get changed and pick up my cookies to take over.

I took yesterday off - it was just too nice to not putter around home. I also divided up some violets yesterday as well. I have a trade going on with those too. I should have some left if anybody is into AV's.

I wanted to get to the callas and dahlias, but spent the remainder of the day cutting back my type 3 clematis....

Yesterday was a good day!

What a garden. Damien and I talked more about gardening and what we need to do it out in the valley. I am in a position to make demands. lol. A greenhouse, a raised area to do potting and such (spares the back a lot) a root cellar, small tractor --- I'm on a roll. Assuming I don't roll over and croak first. I get my confidence from Pirl, BonnieGarden and a few others.

Maybe we could get together another time Carolyn.

Carolyn, you have been busy! So glad you were able to ws thus year. I'm hoping to get some of my hardy annuals started soon. I have been checking my jugs daily. I'm getting more germinatin daily.

I was looking at the Garden Gate book on flower combinations. There's pictures of dahlia Arabian Night and Gallery Art Deco. Those are beautiful! Have anyone seen those on their area/

I rodered Art Deco last year from OHG and they sent me a different dahlia. A great huge red one. It was nice but I really wanted Deco as it is so different. They said they would send this spring. Hope they don't forget.

Teri - I would love to get together! It would be fun!

Mary - I would definitely put my demands out there - you may get more of what you want that way. I pot up everything at my potting bench, but I end up with a sore back. I do have my stool there, but with my helper Merlin - I always let him take my seat. He is in the picture attached.

Anita - I had not heard of Dahlia Arabian Night before so had to look it up. It is gorgeous! I picked up another dahlia tonight when I stopped at Walmart on the way home. Walmart had Akita - which surprised me. Akita then surprised me again by jumping off the shelf and right into my shopping cart!

Oh, I love your helper. He is a beautiful cat. And you just can't trust those dahlia packages. Sneaky devils make their way into internet orders, shopping carts, all manner of ways. lol.

Carolyn, some other people who were waiting for me to have the swap this year, can't make it to Holly's and would like to get together here. We can all keep this in mind and have a small gathering that is a few hours closer to me than Holly and Ric's. Their swap is filled with so many different visual pleasures, but, if one can't make it maybe we can create alternatives.

Love that kitty! Before I enlarged the photo, it looked like he was deeply contemplating the picture on the wall, lol. Is there something above it that has his attention?
I bought some dahlia seeds from the dollar store. I hope they grow.

I have "winter"-sown Magic Fountains delphinium, Madame Butterfly snapdragon, Pansy 'Chianti', and Stock 'Vintage'. The stock has germinated completely, the others not so much. I meant to do many more, but I ran out of winter (or even early spring) weather a week ago!

I wouldn't have made this the year I tried winter sowing if I'd known there wasn't going to be a winter.

I have no plant lights indoors. How can I take advantage of containers to germinate my seeds -- mostly annuals -- now that it's spring?

I tried to WS coleus and lobelia then took them inside. They haven't done a thing. Do you suppose the winter killed the seed. They were out for a month before I took them in.

Great Googley Moogley Carolyn, when you winter sow, you really mean it, huh!?!? =)

Mary, there's a few varieties of Lobelia that are ok to winter sow, they are:
Lobelia cardinalis - Cardinal flower
Lobelia glandulosa - glade lobelia
Lobelia spicata - pale-spike lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica - great blue lobelia
Lobelia spicata - pale-spike lobelia

I'm not sure what you sowed, but if it was any of those you should be ok. If yours aren't doing anything yet, give 'em about 3 weeks or so with soil temps of about 75 degrees F before they germinate.
As the Hitchhiker's Guide will tell you: DON'T PANIC. (in large friendly letters) =)

Nope. Lobelia Crystal Palace Lobelia erinus Guess I better go get some more.

Before you run out the door, don't forget to give 'em a few weeks after the temps are around 75 or so consistently. I don't think you need to count them out yet. Then again, if you get some more, then you might just end up with nicely staggered bloom times. =)

Another tip here on growing tomatos. Lay the plant in sideways, then curve the top of the plant up to the top of the soil. This gives it more room to send down more roots for a heathier plant.

I still have lots of reading on this thread, as I got way behind. But will be back later!

Great advice Crit. Will try assuming my WS tomatoes get that big.

Hope I can remember this great tip, Crit. I try to remember so many that some get lost. Hopefully, not this one!!

LoL @ Carolyn! The exact same thing always happens every time I walk by plants, bulbs or seeds.

Is anyone getting the freezing temps today?

Anita -- we are currently 41°
Looks like possibly a few mid to upper 30's this week.... no frost or freeze warnings.

Lucky you Terese! We had the freeze last night. I had to have my son cover my babies. And we are currently still at 32 degrees. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. Most of my jugs germinated.

I have things growing in my jugs. Some of them aren't making any condensation so think I am going to try to lightly water them. Don't want them drying out and killing what is trying to germinate or has just germinated.

I have opened many of my containers as there are sprouts in most of them. Yes Patti - making sure they have enough water is very important as it heats up - especially as I use a fairly chunky peat moss/pine bark fines soil-less mix to start mine in. I didn't have any vermiculite on hand to add this year so I went ahead, then read that as this type of mix dries it forms a crust difficult for seeds to break thru. :/

I also have moved some WS jugs back inside for cold stratification in the refrigerator due to the lack of cold outside typical of March. I'm not a novice seed starter, but I am starting a lot of native perennials and not much germination information on some, so it's sort of frustrating when nothing happens.

On the upside, lots of seedlings in most containers, so I'll be transplanting most to 2" pots as they obtain their second sets of leaves.

Im just getting eenie sprouts,soo far ,watered them yesterday...I had let them dry out...arrgg..before germination,so they are doing pretty good now...LOL...gotta keep an eye on them,this up an down temps...and wind..

Mine are chugging right along, despite the dog knocking over a full flat-I lost almost NO seedlings, I just flipped the inserts over and the plants held together very well--WS lettuce, cole crops and poppies are tough little customers.

Mine are really sprouting well. Have some that need to be moved as they are getting very tall in the jugs. YEA!!!!!

Is it just my computer, or is DG getting realllly slow. Not just this thread, but even short ones?

It isn't bothering mine, but maybe we need a new thread?

Something is going on with the server, methinks. I had trouble all last week and read similar complaints across several threads.

Patti - why don't YOU start the new thread. :P

I haven't notice a slow down... I've been in and out all day.

I have noticed if I use Firefox for DG, it is much faster than when I use Google Chrome...... Give it a try, Mary.

I DO use Firefox but I have Google Chrome. It seems to be working okay not. I guess it was the computer gremlins waiting for me to cry 'Uncle' to let my computer work okay. Thanks Carolyn.

ive been having trouble for weeks....Very SLLOOWW to load even the home page ??? i can understand photos being slow loaded...Ive lost several posts,lengthy ones too...very Irratating ...enough so I wont do photos anymore.Iwill try firefox tho... I Dont have any trouble at ATP or Cubits at all ???? Ever....So I dont know..whats up

This message was edited Mar 30, 2012 7:24 AM

Maybe you should / we should send our concerns to administration.

They're usually pretty eager to please. :P

A.

huggergirl .... when I am typing a long post, I will copy highlight and 'save' as I go, so as not to lose everything. Also do that when I am finished. That way, if it does disappear, I can just paste it and try again. Just sayin'.

A. .... I hate to start new threads on someone else's thread, that is why I usually don't do it unless the original person isn't available. ^_^

I know Patti - I agree - you know on the Newbie seed thread I am now getting requests for seeds because I started a new thread for RC. :D

A.

Okey dokey then, I guess it's time for me to learn something new and try to start a new one of these. Wish me luck! =)

Come on over to the new thread..... "What have your wintersown so far #3"

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1249836/