edited to put my lists on the correct thread
This message was edited Jan 31, 2014 8:25 PM
"Think Spring!" seed swap DISCUSSION
Buttoneer---
Just FYI---The triple purple/white Datura is called: "Black Currant Swirl".
And--I have plenty of seeds to the double yellow Datura.
No need to reserve...if you are coming.
Karen--
I would like some seeds to your Giant Wine Zinnia.
I grew Zinnias last year--and they are awesome!
Speedie:
I have ONE1- year-old baby Wintersweet in a 4" pot--IF it survived the winter.
It germinated all on its own after Paul dug up the shrub. Must have been there waiting...
Besides that--I have a huge amount of seeds to the WS. Not to worry.
Long wait for a bloom from seeds--5-7 yrs.
Just so you all know--
I collected many seeds last year from my garden. Lots of them! About 35+ kinds.
Now I am trying to figure out how to offer them separate from my big box of the
usual seeds I have always had which are a few years old. Still good!
Many of the seeds I collected are seeds I already have had--just from 2013.
I will figure out a way to code them--but still just have the one box.
Don't want to come with a suitcase..........:o)
It is getting to crunch time! I see many people have not yet listed their "Haves" either.
I don't feel like the Lone Ranger....
Gita
Muddy: Can you hazard a guess as to the Latin name of your Balsamic Impatiens (annual, 2-4' tall depending on sunlight, medium pink)?
Gita, yes please on the Wintersweet seeds, and THANK YOU!!! I edited my "Haves/Wants" post in the other thread to put your name "Gita - ??" next to it in my "Wants" section. =)
Speedie--
I must have 2 cups of WS seeds....
Once this shrub is old enough to bloom--it will produce a huge amount of seeds.
Every bloom turns into a seed pod--that looks like a bit smaller peanuts in the shell.
Each shell holds from 2-4 or 5 seeds.
Waiting anxiously to hear from Paul if the dug up shrub has settled in and has
some blooms coming. This would be the normal time for it to bloom around here.
Seeds.....from one season---2011
WOW that's a lot of seeds!! OK, now I don't feel guilty for adding them to my "Wants" list! heeheeheee THANK YOU!! < =D
I will be Spring Sowing them, in pots outside, to be transplanted into their home later. Any hints/tips/suggestions?
Speedie--
I never, actually. planted them.
Enough seeds always fell into the bed and germinated on their own.
On the WS--the cotyledons are so totally different from the true leaves.
The first are round--the true ones are long and pointed.
This would be year-old seedling.
Aaawwww, she's so cute!! OK, I'll be sure to pay attention to the leaves and not transplant it too soon. They might even stay in their pots until next Spring, just to be safe... if anyone has any better suggestions, I'm all ears! =)
Got this dmail yesterday from Pippi!
Pippi21
Silver Spring, MD (Zone 6b)
Fri, January 31, 2014
03:51 PM
"Judy, sorry but I haven't been keeping up with DG recently. Figured the forums were dead with activity. Thanks for the invitation to the Seed Swap at Terri's..I'd love to come and see everybody again but I'll have to play it by ear..Have so many seed pkg. that I didn't use for last few years and don't know if they are still good unless it is those that I collected from my own flowergardens in 2013, My gardening friend from church laughed when she saw all my lunchbags with seed names on the outside of the bag/date collected, etc. They are hanging on my wife shelf in the garage being held by clothespins!
Hope everybody is holding up under all this deep freeze we've had in January. I feel so sorry for the people in the Southern states that were hit pretty hard by the ice storm. but these 8-10 degree temps aren't popular with us..I'm heading out in a few minutes as I've been "under the weather' since Sunday..these otc drugs aren't cutting it..think it is all sinus/allergy related by the smptoms but this is broncitis season for me usually."
Maybe some one in the Silver Spring area could see if Pippi needs a 'seed fairy' too?
Happy, it is Impatiens balsamina. It seems to prefer part-sun, but does fine in full sun. It is leggy in part shade. I wish I had saved more seeds, but I was in a hurry to get it out of the ground after it finished blooming so that I could plant Great Blue Lobelia in its place. I stuck them in pots until some of the seeds ripened.
It self-sows, and the new plants are easy to transplant if they pop up where they're not wanted. I planted these seeds in 1999!
And though in the Impatiens family so far it seems unaffected by the disease that has decimated the standard Impatiens world wide,
How would you compare the two Muddy?
The kind affected by disease, Impatiens walleriana, is much shorter, blooms all summer long, prefers shade and is deer-candy (slug candy too).
Impatiens balsamina is a big plant - about 2' wide x up to 4' tall, with a stalk up to 1" in diameter at the base. It only blooms once, and starts to turns yellow as soon as the last flower has bloomed. The pods are fun - they pop when you squeeze them. It prefers sunnier conditions, deer don't eat it (never touched mine), I've never seen slugs on it, and I don't think it's affected by the disease.
Did you start yours from seed? Can it be pinched back or grown from cuttings? Would you say it is 'looser' or rangier than I. walleriana? Does it do that same droop but not die when it needs water? How long was it in flower for you? I love the seed pods. too, makes gathering them a fun challenge! Notice any butterflies or polinators attracted to them?
Lol, my slugs and deer preferred their Hosta with out the trimmings !
Gita, the Giant Wine Zinnia is on my want list but I'm planning to order it from Pinetree Garden Seeds and I'll get a pack for you. My gift to you! :)
Balsam Impatiens is a "Grandma's Garden" sort of plant... tall stalks with clumps of flowers and more leaves at the base. It will self-seed, so it's a good one for winter-sowing, also. (Self-sown seedlings are easy to recognize and easy to pull even if they get big, so it's not a pesky plant at all IMO)
Impatiens w. is more of a "bedding plant," with its short compact habit. Plant Balsam Impatiens between mid-sized plants or toward the back of the border... Yes, it's pretty tough about wilting without quite dying, but it likes moist conditions better than dry. I've had it in my north-facing front foundation bed, so it doesn't need even half day sun to bloom. As I remember, it pretty much blooms the rest of the summer once it gets started. (ed. for clarity -- if you want "all summer" blooms, you have to give them a 6 week head start inside, under lights.)
Hope Pippi is better soon! Joyanna and I have been down with "the crud" for a while now, complicated recently with sinus/eye/ear infections. Hopefully we'll be totally bouncy again 2 weeks from now!
This message was edited Feb 1, 2014 9:35 PM
Thank you for the heads-up Judy, I've not heard anything from Betty in a very long time. I'll pop her a d-mail soon, to say "hi". Lots of winter crud going around... but then again, it is the time of year for such things. =/
I had a balsam once. Not sure if I bought it?? probably...
It looked OK--but it was white--and I do not like white flowers a lot--
except beautiful white Petunias.
Anyway--It grew so tall that I swore never to have it again.
Next spring--there were gobs of babies growing up all over.
Yanked them all and tossed them...
I think I may chance some regular Impatiens again this summer.
I miss them too much......I had ONE last simmer--that selfosprouted.
Karen---
You don't have to do that! Seed packets are all in at the HD--and you pay, like, $1
for most Burpee seeds...
Also--I put aside a baggie of seeds for you from the "Limelight 4 O'clock".
You like chartreuse--right? The leaves on this 4 are pale green and the blooms
are bright magenta. I have grown this twice in my garden.
These grow very small--just a little loose mound--maybe 12" tall.
Really a nice accent color with other flowers.
I think I have a picture--this is from 2008.....G.
Sally, I'd love some of your red castor beans. That was such a fun plant to grow.
Has anyone ever tried growing a Clematis from seed?
I have some seeds from my Estonian Clematis--"Piilu" the one in a container
against my patio pole. Smallish, lavender blooms....Hardy to Z.-5.
Can be grown in a container in partial shade as well.
If any of you remember--the seeds looked like sperms--tails and all.
I have some in my stash...
Wonder how long it would take to have a presentable size plant????
It is such a pretty Clematis! I got it from Brushwood 3 or 4 years ago.
G.
Coleup, others have chimed in with information about I. balsamina, but to answer your questions:
I started it from seed in 1999, and then I'd usually collect some seeds but mostly grow whatever popped up in the spring. I never tried growing it from cuttings. I don't remember how long it was in flower - definitely not the entire summer - but it's attractive before it blooms too. I never tried pinching it back, but I suppose that could lengthen the bloom time.
Bumblebees loved it, but I don't think I ever saw butterflies near it. After I pulled them out of the ground, I stuck them in big pots so the bees could still visit them.
Impatiens balsamina's growth habit looks more like Impatiens x hawkeri (New Guinea impatiens) than I. walleriana. I found this PF photo that shows the typical growth habit: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/20247/.
I hope I. walleriana comes back soon - I miss those little plants!
This message was edited Feb 1, 2014 9:41 PM
Gita, I have started several species of Clematis from seed. I surface sow the seeds on seed starting media and then cover with about 1/8 inch of coarse sand. Generally have done one container under lights at 75°, and another set outdoors in early February. Have had success with both. Expect blooms the second season. Have also started some on damp paper towel in a zip-lock baggie.
David
Muddy1, you're right about the balsams... I should have said they bloom "the rest of the summer" after they get started. If you want them to bloom nearly all summer, you have to give them a 6 week head start inside, under lights. I edited my response above, also, for clarity. :-)
I have a seed-grown shrub clematis from greenthumb that bloomed this past year. Gorgeous! Not showy as the clematis in Gita's picture, but very pretty and a bee magnet.
Staggering the sowing times would extend the bloom period, too, but that starts to mean work, and one thing I really like about balsam impatiens is that it is super easy!
I just added Asclepias syriaca (common milkweed) to my haves list if anyone's interested. I assumed everyone probably had all the milkweed they could use, but then I saw the North Creek orders and realize someone might want some.
I'm going to dump any leftover MW seed here and there along the creek near my house in the hopes that I'll get some nice stands going. I sowed a lot of MW seeds there in the fall. It'll be interesting to see how many sprout. If most of them do, I'll end up with some serious thinning out to do!
Ok Muddy, you're on! as the common milkweed i could find and have access to didn't look healthy. I have some Asclepiea currasavica seeds if you would like to try a few tropical milkweeds, When we start Phase two of the North Creek ordering you might find swamp milkweed or Butterfly weed are also good choices. This year is particularly important to have enough milkweed as possible growing as the Monarch butterfly populations are so very low. I hope everyone will plant at least 6 milkweedof two different varieties in addition to what they may already grow,even if they don't like Milkweed cause that's the bare minimum it takes to feed to maturity the eggs one mamma Monarch can lay.
OK, ya talked me into it Judy. Muddy, if it's alright with you, I'd like to add some of your Milkweed seeds to my "want" list, please. Do you still have enough to go around? Thank you!
Judy, thank you for being such a good pusher, err... enabler, uuhh... encouragement!! =)
Muddy, please put me down for some of those A. syriaca seeds as well! Judy, that's good to know about 6 plants of two different varieties.
Coleup, speediebean and catmint: I'll divide up what I have and let you know how many seeds to expect. I'm glad to hear you're interested!
Coleup, I'll take you up on your offer of Asclepias currasavica. It'll look great in my orange, yellow, red, white and blue garden bed in a sunny area. Edited to say that all of the deer-resistant, shade-tolerant perennials I've found are purple, blue or pink.
I already have Swamp milkweed and Butterfly weed - 3 Swamp milkweeds that were planted too late and/or didn't get enough sun to bloom last year.
I've had one butterfly weed for years. This is the first year that I left the pods on; previously I removed them in the hopes it would re-bloom (never did). I'm going to plant the relatively few seeds I have in a clearing in the woods.
I've taken over the only sunny clearings in the 11 acres of land owned by our homeowners' association. No one else cares about the areas, so I'm growing berry-producing shrubs and dogwoods and pollinator plants.
This message was edited Feb 2, 2014 2:14 PM
Thanks Muddy! Your 'nobody cares about it so I've taken to......' sonds so similar to what I'm doing along my paper route! Six 'customers have agreed to let me plant and help me plant a milkweed/nectar patch this year so far.
Just started a new thread for discussion of Monarchs, milkweed, pollinators, native plants, and acts of random habitat restoration. The journey of 1000 milkweeds begins with the first seed!
The tropical milkweed is a 'pretty' plant
http://www.ebay.com/sch/items/?_nkw=asclepias+curassavica&_sacat=11700&_ex_kw=&_mPrRngCbx=1&_udlo=&_udhi=&_sop=12&_fpos=&_fspt=1&_sadis=&LH_CAds=
HAPPY GROUNDHOG'S DAY!
Traditionally, this is when I like to start winter sowing seeds, although I doubt I'll manage more than a couple of containers today. That also makes it a great time to run through my seed stash and see what's there.
For anybody unfamiliar with winter sowing, it uses milkjugs or other containers to give seeds a little extra protection and organization, but otherwise it's very similar to what mother nature accomplishes with "self-sown" seedlings. See http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/585/
I've particularly got my eye on my alpine strawberry seeds (ones I ordered last year and "lost")... maybe some columbines, too. :-)
Goodness, I must have been really lacking coffee (or something) when I read the previous posts.... Judy, does this mean you have seeds from a different milkweed variety? If so, may I make a seed request from you too, please? THANK YOU!! < =D
It's gorgeous, coleup! Given that the milkweeds hopefully will be eaten, I'll plan to put them behind other plants in the new sunny area in my yard.
What a neat idea to plant pollinator plots along your paper route; you'll get to enjoy them too.
Sun's coming out; maybe the groundhog will see his shadow! According to the Washington Post, spring comes early 39% of the times he sees his shadow.
Thanks for the direct winter sowing info, Critterologist. It seems to work better than starting seeds in pots or as plugs, at least for me.
Yes, Speedie I have some seeds of A currasavaca and may have several other milkweed varieties seeds but they may not arrive by Seed Swap time.
http://www.monarchbutterflygarden.net/butterfly-plants/asclepias-curassavica-tropical-milkweed/
Does where you work sell milkweed? Order from North Creek or Maryland Plant?
A syriaca(Common Milkweed) has a deep tap root and is hard to move or remove, so if planting in your garden choose a spot carefully
http://www.monarchbutterflygarden.net/asclepias-syriaca/
Coleup you've sold me now on getting some of your A currasavaca plugs from the NC buy! I've been avoiding them because they are not hardy here, but hey, I love annuals!! :-)
I have some milkweed seeds from a seed swap last year. I won't need them. I never tried to grow anything except the 'Ice Ballet' so I can't guarantee anything about them. Small quantities of each:
Asclepias incarnata 'Ice Ballet'
Asclepias purparescens, purple milkweed
Whorled milkweed
Swan milkweed
P.S. I actually have 2 plants of 'Ice Ballet' that I would like to rehome if they survive the winter. They were "born" last year so I'm guessing they will bloom this year
Karen, Id like any of those seeds you can share and the two 'Ice Ballet' plants also...not to be hoggy, but the peninsula where My route is is already a known stop over place for migrating Monarchs in the fall coming over from Cape May, NJ so a flowering plant or two would be so good in that respect, Also a larger plant will help other of the 65 residences see what I mean, that milkweed can actually look good and not just tall and wild and seed everywhere. Pretty please?
Coleup, glad you want them! I tried to grow milkweeds for the monarchs, but my yard is too isolated and urban for them. I haven't seen them in my alley in years. I do see them at my work, which is next to the Patuxent Wildlife Refuge, and I have sown swamp milkweed there. :)
Thanks Karen. Many of the milkweeds are loved by other pollinators as nectar sources!
Judy, thank you! They don't have to be in time for the seed swap... be looking for me in your D-mail in box in the morning. =)
Karen, may I have a few of whichever ones you can spare, please? You decide, I like surprises. =)
coleup--
Would you have a Bleeding Heart started shrub? Any sze...
Mine finally died last year--the roots have been rotting out for a couple
years. Last year--there was nothing but pulp left.
I don't know why--as it was in front of my house in the small bed--
not crowded at all. AM sun passing over for maybe 2 -3 hrs.
Right in front of my steps.
This is one I got from you a few years ago...
I have seeds--but would like a started bush.
LMK---Thanks, Gita