Directions for Summer Sowing

I am a relatively new gardener and I feel I am ready to move from buying plants from my local nursery to growing them from seeds. I just don't know the best method.

Would I be able to sow seeds now and be likely to have plants large enough to put in the ground this fall? It stays warm here well into October, so I'm guessing I have time, but I was not certain.

Also any tips on best methods to sow seeds before I turn to the internet to search for directions?

Finally, what is an EB?

Thanks in advance.

Hi Baxter, it all depends on what kind of seed you want to grow really, if it is perennial flowers, then you can usually start them about september time, but as these would still be very young seedlings by your fall, you would need to have some protection for them to see them over the winter, the seeds would take anything from 2 to 4 weeks to germinate, then you need to seperate them and put them into indevidual containers/pots till spring time before finnaly planting them out in the garden, Biannials are the same, like Wallflower etc, the difference being for them is, they go out in spring from a Sepember sowing and flower that year, but will die off and thats that, you need to sow them all over again, but Annials, can be sown in spring wherever you want them to flower in the garden and only last for the one season, so without knowing what it is you wish to achieve, I cant help you further than that, but would say, you should go to your local librey/book store and search for some gardening books for beginners as there is a whole pile of books suitable for starting off plants from seed plus propogation by cuttings etc and they will give you lots of advice that you can study for the great pleasure of growing your own plants, it is worth a go and gives a lot of satisfaction knowing you produces the plants yourself, you also get a far bigger selection to choose from with seeds. hope this sets you off in the right direction and good luck. WeeNel.

Thanks WeeNel -- I would be growing perrenials, and you answered my most important question, which was whether or not I'd get them into the ground this fall.

I want to move to seeds for just the reason you suggested variety. Around here everyone has the same black eyed susans, cone flowers, russian sage and hostas in their gardens. Which is not surprising, because they work well in this area -- and they are already in my garden :).

EB = earthbox

http://davesgarden.com/terms/go/1686/

if you put earthbox in the search box, you will come up with many threads with amazing info.

chris

I have a suggestion for you about sowing your seeds...why not sow them in a seed bed? I prepared a seed bed a few years back using the "lasagna style" gardening method which is very simple and easy. It turned out to be the best flower bed I have. If you're not familiar w/ lasagna style gardening it's all over the web, just look it up, you just layer organic materials (aka...like making a lasagna).

Anyway, I now use this as a seed/seedling bed. I scatter seeds on it because the soil stays loose and moist without much maintenance and I don't have to worry about burying the seeds. Your climate may be much hotter and sunnier than mine though and that may not work for you. I'd still recommend it for transplanting your seedlings into this fall, it'll give them a great start. I often let my perennials grow in this bed for a year before moving them to their permanent location. Also, if any plant needs babying I move it to this bed.

Something to keep in mind about your containers is the depth of the soil and how much moisture it will hold. You'll want your containers to have at least 4-5" of soil so that they will hold enough moisture once your seeds start to sprout. During mid-day heat you don't want them drying out and frying your new little babies. I've had that happen to me and it's soooo disappointing!

Also, being that it's warmer this time of year your seeds will most likely germinate quite quickly for you, so be ready ahead of time with any supplies you may need. Don't count on keeping any of your new plants in containers over the winter unless they are hardy to at *least* two zones below you, otherwise the roots will freeze and they will die.

Hope you have lots and lots of fun...and don't rule out winter sowing!