Well, I transplanted the basil using the clump method. What a messy process! I hope the transplants survive. : /
I couldn't get the seedlings out of their cell packs very easily and ended up disturbing their roots quite a bit. The good news is that they had very long and healthy roots, so I hope they're not too stressed.
I wish I'd taken pictures. Jill, you must have had someone help you take pictures for that article. I could barely manage the mess with two hands!
Seed starting MAF 2014
You'll get better at "tickling" the roots apart on the clumps! Mostly I end up taking my own photos, which is how I get some awkward looking angles LOL. Nowadays, of course, I could get Garden Girl to help -- she's getting pretty good with my old pocket camera!
Missed another new Thread!!!! Bummer!
Maybe--you all that start new Threads on the MAF--could "advertise" that you did so.
I am negligent about checking for new Threads....just do my "watched"ones.
I SOOO hate finding one that already has 50 entries to it...
Now--I have to do some catching up... Read the whole Thread so far...
Some comments...
I am totally behind with seeds....the only plants I have seeded are the daturas--
as they take a long time to germinate...Nothing showing yet.
Ric--
I grew 12 Romaine lettuces last year--they came up and did OK--grew to full size--
and then, one by one, the bottoms of 6 got some kind of crown rot and I lost half of them.
Full size yet! The ones I could harvest tasted great
I had them in my raised bed--so not enough sun, I think..Not gonna do that again.
Karen---
You could get a lamp that uses CFL bulbs and keep your seedlings under that.
Kind of like my AV's under that hanging light. But--I know how tight your place is...
Also--I hate the peat pots too--I do not believe that the roots can make it through them.
Bonnies plants at the HD all come in peat pots--and bc we water them almost every day--
the pots just fall apart. They DO tell you to remove the top (plastic ring) and the bottom
when you plant.
Re starting things in water---I am NOT going to flip my lid. I have now started CC's in water--
and it is much faster than in soil. Sometimes I am just stubborn with what I think is right....
Can you bear with me?
SS--
I start most of my seeds (not many...) in Pro Mix--but I have also done seed starting mix.
Maybe I will mix the two? I don't try to fertilize the soil either.
Also--you can use Popsicle sticks to lift out small seedlings--and to, gently, re-locate them.
They really work well--no hands involved--less mess too.
I am now shamed into starting some seeds..I k now i am behind--but I just never
found the right "hole" in my off days to get to it...It has to be a commitment.
I have all the seeds I WANT to plant in a box--and know that is way too many.
Just my wish-list...
And, like many of you-I don't have room under my lights--all spaces in use.
Many other BIGGER cuttings and plants reside there now. Brugs--Coleus--
Braz. Plumes--etc. Most of these are already big plants and could, probably,
do OK just on my DR table with some light. Or I may have to rearrange--once again--
the spaces by my LR window. Right now--the 2 huge Clivas and about 5 pots of
Amaryllis take up a lot of room there.
Tomorrow and Sat, has to be THE day I do this!!! Nothing else on my schedule.
hanks all for the nudge....G.
Gita, go to preferences at the top of your home page on DG. Click on that and go to forum settings, click on that, now go down the list and make sure you have Mid-Atlantic checked, then go to the bottom and click submit. This should show all active MA forums on your home page.
So another newbie question. When do people start sowing their seeds outdoors? I'm thinking of all the seeds I got at the seed swap...
? That shows if there's activity in the MAG forum, but not if there are new threads... there's often "new" activity in a given forum on some thread I've decided not to "watch." I still make sure I'm watching forums, though, just so I have an easy way to click to the forum if there aren't any new posts on my "watched threads."
I'm going to try getting some tomatoes out earlier this year, using covers for occasional frost and/or using wall 'o water enclosures. I recently read about leaving WOW's on all season and just folding them down so they're out of the way... the raised ring that's formed around the base of the plant can be useful for holding a good amount of water from the hose, so it gives the roots a nice soaking.
Catmint, that depends on the seeds... hardy perennials or "half hardy" annuals can be started in, oh, early April (now if you're using "winter sowing" containers for extra protection). More tender plants need to wait until the soil warms and/or the danger of frost is past -- usually around Memorial Day, or at least that's the day I consider "safe" around here.
Thanks Critter! That's a helpful rule of thumb.
Over here--the frost free date is May 10th. You are in a bit cooler zone, Jill.
I don't think Silver Spring would be much different than Baltimore....
G.
Good point Gita about the different zones.
"frost free" and "when the soil warms" are generally a week or two apart... I usually shoot for getting tomatoes out in mid-May, but if I plant peppers at that time they just sulk. Soil will warm up faster in containers, in a raised bed, or if you cover with black plastic (also good for "solarizing" to kill weeds & weed seeds).
Catmint, I've found this article to be really interesting: http://www.viette.com/v.php?pg=555
Apparently, forsythia blooms when the soil is at a very specific temperature, so you can schedule a lot of maintenance/seeding around their bloom time. And I've yet to see any signs of forsythia blooms. :( The soil is cooooold right now.
haha thanks sag, that had a lot of tips. Now I know when to plant the chard and beets.
I just got done on another thread commenting on Forsythia, after you did, before I came here!
Lol Sally, I'm a little scatter brained this morning -- I should have kept the forsythia discussion to one thread! I've been anxiously waiting for my next door neighbor's forsythia to bloom. :)
Yesterday I sowed tobacco seeds and dahlia seeds purchased from Pine tree and tobacco seeds and 'red sea' ageratum collected from my garden last year. The tobaccos are under the grow lights b/c they need light to germinate and the dahlia seeds are on the warm shelf over an incandescent light bulb b/c they need warmth to germinate. Will be sowing a few things at a time every few days from now till I run out of space or seeds. :)
Can't remember if I sow my zinnias into individual pots or many seeds into one container to lift them out when they get big enough. Are they okay with a little root disturbance?
"Will be sowing a few things at a time every few days from now till I run out of space or seeds. :)"
haha sounds like a plan! I think I will too.
I'd say most things are OK with root disturbance, or can tolerate it when you are gentle. I have done tiny poppies which are one of those do not disturb things. Maybe best done when they are small. Zinnias, I'd say, are able to take disturbance well.
SSG, I just loved that article on Forsythia blooms. Thanks so much for posting it.
I've made really good progress in converting a 17x12 foot area from a bed of shredded tree stump to a bed ready for a pollinator garden, and even planted some perennials I bought last year, but I still have plenty to do elsewhere, so I'm glad that most of the seeds I got at the swap have to be cold & moist stratified until the end of April. I should actually be ready to sow by then!
Thanks SSG now I want to go out and get some forsythia! :-)
Catmint, don't plant one! Just look for them around you. I don't consider them all that nice to have. Most that you see end up pruned wrong and planted in a place too small for them. Ask me how i know...!
LOL Sally,
Catmint, Don't buy one there is a good chance that I will have some at the Plant Swap for anyone that would like one. I started a campaign to remove my very large bush several years ago and replace it with a Prairie Fire Crab-apple Tree. But although I got it down to a size where we could possibly pull it out with the truck I still haven't gotten rid of it and every year since it has gained a bit on me.
And VERY easy to get from rooted branches. Ask me how I know...again!
There is 200 feet of them on one side of my property. Think of that- could be 200 feet of something else, with berries for birds. Like 50 other bushes! 2 each of all the things I have decided I really really want after reading about them. LOL
Sally there is a hedge of them at my parents house and Dad keeps it well clipped.
You know that I do tend to like clipped hedges and even I don't like them that way. LOL
I just have the one bush and when I finally do get it out I will replant some of it in another location I do like them but wouldn't want too much of them. Jamie and Deb took a lot of rooted starts they wanted to put a really long hedge down one side of their property. I did try to talk them out of it but it is their property. Luckily I think that a lot of the rooted starts didn't make it probably due to the fact that they weren't watered well enough when it got really hot and dry. Way too far to drag hoses and carrying buckets of water that far would be a serious chore. Also there was some comment about the FIL mowing them down while he was being "helpful" and mowing for them. They were planted between Jamies property and the FIL's property. LOL
I'll dig up forsythia for you, Catmint! I have some little shrubs that started as rooted branches from an original shrub. I planted in a wooded area of my yard where not much else will grow, and I like seeing those little patches of yellow. I think a whole hedge of them is a bad idea, however; for one, they're a one season shrub.
thanks, Muddy, that is so nice of you! I remember when I lived in CT I always knew spring was coming when the forsythia bloomed, and it was everywhere--it was really a major indicator, and so I do have some fondness for it--although I agree I would not want a whole hedge in my tiny yard LOL.
I see much less forsythia down here than I did in Connecticut--it does not seem quite as common here...
Seems I have already jumped the gun on a couple of things...
Pruned my Hybrid Roses back already---and I have cut back my ONE Butterfly bush
about a month ago. Oh, well.....No major harm....
I knew about the Forsythia and pruning your roses...from Allan Summers....years ago....
That first warmish day we had--I just had to get out and do something....
G.
Holly missed one detail about Jamie's planting, she said hedge. He actually planted them in an old hedgerow, like beside a farm field. The forsythia will help choke out less desirable native growth like cat briar and poison ivy. He has also added more nice natives like redbud. I'm going to the GH for awhile today so I'll take a couple of pics of my seed starting set up.
Looking forward to it, Ric!
So Sally, I bought larkspur seeds on a whim this year. Never grown it before. Looks like they have sort of fussy germinating/growing requirements. Did you just sow them outside before the snow fell? How well does that work for you?
Typ, I'll confess to being a terrible seed starter! I have had larkspur self sow for years, after getting them from moms yard. I knew they needed some stratification, and I saw seedlings out there on Saturday. And I knew I had a packet from 2010 seeds, so I decided to get them out there asap. I scratched them lightly in and pressed soil. So, I have ever paid attention and can't tell you how to do it and how well it works.
8 ^p
Promise I'll get the Amaranth in the mail tomorrow.
Typ, I think I've heard that larkspur does best if direct sowed outdoors. I've had packets of larkspur seed that I've had in my stash for a few years. I keep meaning to direct sow it, but somehow keep forgetting about it. I'm going to try what Sally just did with them as soon as this latest round of snow melts...
Edited to add that I first saw larkspur in one of the yards that was on the Leesburg Gardening Tour about 10 years ago. It was completely self seeded in a circular bed around a large oak tree - very, very charming. Have liked it ever since.
This message was edited Mar 17, 2014 2:53 PM
What's the best way to sow Rudbeckia 'Indian Summer'?
My BIL Richard and the 4 soon to be step kids (ages 11, 9, 6, and 5) just left after an afternoon of sledding. The 2 youngest ones came in when they got cold and spent a few hours with me while Richard and the 2 oldest ones were still enjoying the outside fun. They helped me make a salad for lunch, and then I showed them the seeds that are growing. It is so nice to share these kind of things with kids.
I am always amazed at the tomato seedlings. I sowed one seed in each little Jiffy peat pellet and set them on a heating mat - two 72 cell trays. With different germination rates, as each seed sprouted, I moved the peat pellet from the heating mat to a shelf under fluorescent lights. The kids helped me transfer the ones that have sprouted since yesterday. Nearly 100% germination now. Will I really have 114 tomato plants LOL!!!
Muddy if those are the seeds from me, they have NOT been stratified. I don't know if they actually need to be or not. I never stratified the ones I got when I bought the seed packet a few years ago (what I gave was fresh seed collected from my own plants). I don't think they are very fussy. If you don't get much germination that way, I would put half in the fridge for a few weeks and then try again.
I need to get busy and get some seeds in the ground. I am such a slacker. LOL
GITA- I had the gardening program at the library on Saturday. Eleven people came to hear about container gardening from the master gardener-she said that's about average attendance these days. Most of them looked through the seeds and took some. The rest of the edibles, the gardener took to use in other programs. They all thank you very much! As do I, cuz everybody loves freebies at programs..
My coworkers will look through the seeds too. It turns out I do have some gardening coworkers.
Thanks, typwc. It seems 'Indian Summer' doesn't need to be stratified, but does need to be started indoors to guarantee flowers this summer.
Muddy, mine definitely did not bloom the first summer. But 2nd year was spectacular!
Thanks again, Typ. I think I'll start some in my little outdoor greenhouse and direct sow the rest. They're definitely worth the wait!
Karen--
Since your Rudbeckia did not bloom the 1st year--did it grow?
Like....Could i see it in the bed and how big did it get?
I am afraid mine would disappear in the mess of everything else
and they would get lost.
G.
Gita, yes they grew. For the first half of the summer they were kind of puny and I guess if you weren't careful, you could miss them. As babies, they look a lot like those weedy plantains and I almost pulled a few out! Don't tuck them in behind annuals because they would certainly get lost. But by the end of summer they had put on many big leaves and the plant was probably about 8" across. You could grow them in 4 or 6" nursery pots the first year and plant them out the second year: give them room in the second year!
1. Here's a pic of mine at the beginning of the second year. I was trying to take a picture of the azelea and the tulips and while the composition is certainly subpar as to that objective, at least you can see the Indian Summers in this one. :/
2. I'm not kidding. Give them plenty of breathing room!
