Poll: What DIDN'T germinate?

The creature from hell visits my garden every night. It has eaten so many things- 1 of my 2 burgundy gaillardia, a gaillardia goblin, one of only 3 cleome, many of the zinnia, some blue flax, larkspur, catchfly, I've lost track. Most mornings I discover the damage. With some zinnia, a 3 or 4 inch seedling just completely vanished, roots and all. I'm blaming this on maybe a rabbit, but I honestly don't know.

He, or some other creature also digs holes, sometimes unearthing plants and leaving them on top of soil. Sometimes there is no plant involved- just a hole. I don't think rabbits do that. I'm really frustrated and discouraged. And I'm not quite through planting out.

I keep sprinkling blood meal. I've also put out nearly 2 POUNDS of cayenne. Yes, I meant pounds.

Karen

Sounds like the raccoon I just caught today in a Have-a-heart type trap and relocated. Every morning my pots on the deck were emptied, the new plants in the yard were dug up, and my winter sowing was dumped. I had been hulliing everything in the garage at night--too much work!!! Between the raccoons dumping and the groundhogs eating, I am beginning to wonder if it is worth the effort........

Looking back, I had a few that just did not germinate

Sandvine Milkweed
Datura, white
Cup Plant

others did not germinate, but it was due to the seeds molding, or the fact that I soaked the seeds and probably should not have. Those were Morning Glories. and other seeds that just molded were, Sunflowers and a Bean Vine.

I did Datura last year and got about 2/3 germ.-I did not WS, in May I just put the seeds where I wanted them, covered lightly w/ soil and made sure they got A LOT of water-it took about 3-4 weeks, but then they were ther. After they were about 10" high, they jsut grew like weeds-just an FYI in case it helps anyone...I didn't do all that other stuff!! They were the easiest thing I grew!! Also, I put them in about Mother's Day and in a place that got about 75% sun during the course of the day!!

I haven't had any datura or columbines come up either. I have about 1000 bachelor buttons too and marigold too.
A lot of things won't come up because too many stupid things have happened. The dog dragging milk jugs all over the yard, me knocking them over, etc, etc. So most of my non germinating will be my own fault!!
I lost my wave petunias too because as I was taking them outside I dropped the container. I'm sure I'll have them coming up, but in all the wrong places.

>>The dog dragging milk jugs all over the yard, me knocking them over, etc, etc.

Lorraine -- this is one reason i use card board boxes or laundry baskets. If i just plunked milk jugs in the snow... the dog would certainly think it's his toy.

I learned that lesson too. I thought I had the milkjugs in a place he wouldn't find them, but....., so mine are all in boxes and bins and laundry baskets now

you know what irked me. I planted a bunch of hollyhocks, some I bought and some I traded for. the ones I traded for all germinated great. nothing on the bought seeds. I wintersowed them...all the same.

kqcrna, there's no way that creature was not at your house. Couldn't have abeen he was here turning some of my leaves brown.
Must have been his brother. I've heard it's a really big family.

grampapa: What a shame about your hollyhocks. I love them and always wintersow a bunch. Never had a problem with the purchased ones and most of the time I get blooms the first summer.

Lorraine: I wondered what you were talking about. I had to go back to the top of the thread. I didn't realize this was resurrected from last April.

Karen

Karen -- I 'resurrected' it when i was looking for good old threads....this one had a lot of seeds that may have been difficult to germinate.

and, some southerners are getting germination, where us up in the cold north, wont get any for a while.

Yes, those southerners do like to show off at this time of year, don't they!

As an update on my above reports of poor germination:

Echinacea: can take a long time and I get sick of falling over milk jugs, eventually dumping ungerminated ones into my garden beds. After dumping echinacea last year, I had 3 more pop up in a flower bed. Since I sowed both double decker and magnus, I don't know yet what kind they are. So I got a total of 6 new echinacea last year.

Karen

Also, I did eventually get a few amaranthus perfecta, cleome sparkler, columbine origami (far less germination on origami than McKana's the year before). The balloon flowers never did germinate and only 2 burgundy gaillardia.

Gaillardia, though I love them, don't like me. It remains my true booger plant. I get very poor germination. If I can get them to germinate, they're beautiful for one summer, but rarely survive winter. I don't think they like my wet clay in winter time.

My booger plant!

Karen

LOL at Karen's booger plant. These are mine, too. I have heavy clay soil and I assume that's the problem here. I treat them like annuals now. It's very disappointing because I love the shade of the burgundy.

Isn't it funny how different everyone's germination can be? I am not sowing any echinacea this year because the last two years I did I got so much germination I can't even give them away anymore. Cleome and balloon flowers were also great for me. However, I got zero on liatris, 2 seedlings of delphinium and maybe 3 or 4 of salvia. Guess which ones I really wanted?

this will be interesting....

i have the Burgandy Gaillardia. Echinacea germinated OK for me last year, so they should bloom this summer [ i did get 1 flower last year] I also now have Cleome and balloon flower... so we shall see how they all do for me. Where i'm planting is old corn fields, so it's not the clay, like i have around my house.

and the ironic thing is... where my house is, used to be corn fields ... and of course they scrape the good soil away and leave the crap clay.

Sometimes the seed itself is undoubtedly the problem, too. Like I said common cleome germinated fine, sparkler series was poor. Zilch on ballon flowers, so I'm going to try later this year. It's new seed, from a different trader.

As of this morning, one of my 2 burgundy gaillardias still shows some sign of green, the other looks dead.

And my salvia were spectacular.

Karen

Out of 120 varieties last year, 19 didn't germinate.

Adlumia fungosa, "Climbing Fumitory"
Asperula orientalis, "Blue Woodruff"

Campanula glomerata, "Clustered Bellflower" -'Odessa' -The person I traded with didn't know how old these seeds were. Campanulas usually come up like gangbusters, so I think these were duds.

Cimicifuga ramosa, "Black Cohosh" -'Pink Spike' -Apparently, this germinates best with a warm period, followed by cold, followed by warm and can take up to 2 years to germinate.

Cyphomandra Betacea, "Tree Tomato"

Digitalis parviflora, "Milk Chocolate" Foxglove -Think the seeds were duds; Foxgloves usually germinate quickly and well.

Pelargonium grossularioides, "Coconut Scented Geranium"

Impatiens glandulifera, "Policeman's Helmet" -I've read that these seeds have short viability, so the seeds might have been too old.

Knautia macedonica, "Egyptian Rose"
Meconopsis cambrica, "Welsh Poppy"
Mirabilis viscosa
Monarda citriodora, "Lemon Beebalm"
Monarda didyma, "Beebalm"

Perilla frutescens, "Red Shiso" -These seeds apparently also have a short viability. This year, I traded for fresh, and they came up great.

Pinellia pedatisecta, "Green Dragon" -Think they rotted in the cold weather. Next time, I'll spring sow.

Rodgersia aesculifolia, "Rodger's Flower"
Sabatia angularis, "Rose Genetian"
Saponaria officinalis, "Bouncing Bette"

Tanacetum niveum, "Silver Tansy" -I read somewhere that these seeds are another one with short viability. Next time, I'll trade for fresh.

When you finally figure out it "just a'int happening" can you just discard the top of the seed starter and not have to throw the whole thing out . Then I could replant in same cont.

You might still get some of the first seeds germnating along with the new ones. If you want, you can save the soil from non-sprouters and use it for other things; I use it to top up container plants, pot up new plants, amend the icky soil in my neighbor's flower bed that I've taken over. (It does lead to some volunteers in interesting places, but I like surprises.)

I just dump the entire contents into a flower bed. Sometimes you get nice surprises a short time later. I got 3 of my echinacea that way, tons of cosmos, emilia, some zinnias, lots of things. I also dump into beds any small amount of potting mix left in the jug after plantout. Some of them come up soon thereafter. They make for a nice surprise some mornings.

Karen

That is actually happening somehow to some of the plants in the little jiffy cups under a light. I noticed 2 different plants coming up in some of them. Either the seeds flew around or I put seeds in not realizing I had already put something else!! Oh woe is me. It's okay, don't feel bad for me. I'll be okay, (having my little pity party)

well, two different varieties are better than thinking you put seeds in there, but didn't -- then all that work and NO germination.

Oh, that's happened too. Probably the ones with two are because I put seed in, forgot, then put a different one in. Oh well, it'll all come out in the was, or flowerbed!!! We never said we didn't screw up , did we?

The only things that have not germinated for me yet are:

Forget Me Not
Spearmint
Trident Maple
Senna alata

It could be that all of these need longer than everything else I planted . . .