Today I planted out my first few seedlings- lupines and poppies. The lupines were 2 to 3 in. tall . The roots were so big I couldn't get them out intact but most survived with at least a 2 or 3 in. root- as big as what was above the soil. When I dumped the container there were lots of LONG broken roots remaining in the soil. Attached is a photo of one that didn't break.
Karen
Fantatstic! Talk about long tap roots!!
Karen,
What a cool pic and a great way to show how well wintersowing works!
Michelle
I just made a trip out there in the rain to check on those lupine. They look good, none the worse for wear from my breaking off all those long roots. Today we're supposed to get strong storms, wind, heavy rain, possible hail. It is, after all, monsoon season here in tornado alley. There won't be a time that's safe from storms for months so I just have to hope for the best. I hope those babies survive. At least they won't get sunburned!
Karen
looks good...I'm going to plant out some of my stuff too..here's a sampling
Wow Anita! I can't figure out why yours have sprouted so early compared to mine. Do you get more sun? Warmer nights? I have serious seedling envy! LOL
So Anita, how are you deciding when to plant out? First true leaves? Second?
Karen
Here are some more roots from Lupine, "The Govenor".
I have planted out silene, anterrhinum, bacherlor's buttons, iberis, and gloriosa daisy. They all look great, but have not seen temps below upper 30's yet. We should get that tonight and/or tomorrow night. I am most impressed with anterrhinum. They seem stronger than ever since I planted them out. I wish I'd wintersown many many more of them.
You Zone 6ers are way ahead of me...
I have just a few sprouts showing here and there--maybe I don't have my containers in enough sun?
Or maybe they got flooded out while I was away? I used miracle gro moisture retension soil and maybe that kept them too wet?
I am getting a little depressed about my Wintersowing project, but I am keeping the faith, nevertheless...I do have shasta daisy seedlings and a few tiny poppies....
Yours all look so good! Thanks for posting.
Any zone 6ers still waiting for sprouts?
Glad you're happy with your Anterrhinum. If they germinated quickly, you probably still have time to sow a few more varieties of this seed. Enjoy!
tabasco: First of all, don't get discouraged! You have germination in many of your containers. Lots of my seedlings are still miniature size. Not all my seedlings are as vigorous as Lupines or Poppies!
What side of your house are your containers located at?
Does your soil look waterlogged or have standing water in the container? If so, just poke a few more holes in them to let out the excess water. Otherwise, they are fine!
Lots of gardeners are patiently waiting for germination, larger sprouts, but most of all, warm & sunny days to start playing in the dirt!!
Keep the faith!!
tabasco - I'm zone 5 and about half my containers have sprouted but only Centaurea has true leaves - the rest are sort of sitting there waiting for warmer temps I suspect.
tabasco: I have lots of sprouts but most are very tiny; some are barely visible. I still have many containers with no sign of life.
It wouldn't hurt to give your unsprouted containers more sun to heat them up. Just be careful about the ones that have sprouted; If you put those in sun you'd better remove the tops or the seedlings will fry. It gets really hot in those containers when the sun beats on them.
Karen
Do what Karen said on any that have germinated.... off with their tops!
OK. Will move them to a sunnier location (south facing front yard? neighbors will think I am truly nutsy, but, who cares? neighborhood association might vote us out but anything for the wintersowing mania!! LOL)....
(also, I have to catch up with kqcrna who lives on the other side of town!! She's already planted out her poppies!! )
tabasco, don't follow my lead. I don't know anything! I just had a jug of poppies where most were croaking; I don't know why. So I stuck the few good looking ones in the ground.
I have health issues; probably going to have surgery in a couple of weeks. So I'm worried that everything will just die in the containers while I am incapacitated for a while. The jug of poppies was looking bad so the few remaining ones I stuck into a bed. There are a couple out there which are so tiny you can hardly see them but they're still alive.
I had a similar problem with those lupines. They just outgrew the jug. I knew I wouldn't have a chance to repot them then plant out after risk of frost and those taproots were getting all tangled. So I stuck them in a bed as well. I've had to cover the lupines the past 2 nights for frost. So far, so good. But I know it's too early for us to plant them out here in cinti. I think poppies, sweet peas, and bb's would probably be OK though.
My other dilemma is that I need some yard work done which I am now unable to do because of my current physical problem. I had planned to make a new planting bed in the back yard but have had to resort to getting a landscaper. He's also supposed to trench the edges of existing beds, so I can't really plant in them either. I'm hopeful that he will do it tomorrow. Then I can start to plant out some poppies, sweet peas, and bb's.
Karen
Sorry guys - I forgot to watch this thread!!!
I kept my containers on my stone patio which is on the south side of my house - I guess it offered a form of bottom heat?
As for planting out - I definitely waited for true leaves and a bit of height. So far I've planted out my poppies, Lavatera and Lace Flower. There should be some more that can go in this weekend, weather permitting
tabasco: If you move your containers to a Southern location, you'll have to be vigilant! They will dry out quickly because of the sun. You'll need to provide them with water, probably daily, if it doesn't rain. My jugs are in an Eastern location and mainly get morning & mid-day sun.
Karen: So sorry to hear about your health concerns! Do you have anyone in your neighborhood that could help you out? Perhaps watering your containers while you are recuperating, in exchange for plants? Please let us know how you are doing.
Shirley, thanks. I still have to have a couple more tests; surgery will be in a couple of weeks. If the landscaper gets the beds done, hopefully in the next few days I can start to plant out poppies, sweet peas, and bb's. The problem is I have 80 containers! Friends have offered to babysit my babies while I'm out of commission but they all work during the day and don't have much time. They also have black thumbs (plants die when my best friend just looks in their direction). One neighbor has some gardening sense and I'll probably depend on her. I've already given them a few plants from the 2 jugs I've planted. I'll move all containers to the north side of my house then, too, so they don't fry, and I might be able to remove the container tops completely by then. But my best bet would probably be to plant out what I can behorehand and hope for mother nature to take over.
Karen
Karen, Good Luck!
Dave
When giving directions to black-thumbed people about your plants, the safest thing for relatively short periods of time is to to tell them to keep them in shade, damp, and cool; most plants will survive as long as they are not frozen or baked dry in the sun.
Karen:
I think your idea about planting out what you're able to before surgery and the rest will be put on the North side of your house as a temporary holding spot until you are able to do more again is an excellent idea!
The weather is supposed to be nice for the next few days. I might try to plant out poppies, sweet peas and bb's. That is, if the ground dries out some from the recent monsoons. It got up to 80 degrees yesterday before the storms. Now, frost tonight.
Karen
We're on our way to Mason, Ohio tomorrow. It will be a short visit. Is it going to warm up any over the next 3 days? I hope not. I'm always more comfortable on trips if the weather is on the cool side. I guess it's the several layers of blubber I'm packing.
