lol, tcs, absolutely will! :)
Second Chance Wishlist Swap #2 - Chat & Questions
One thing to be aware of with our dogwoods - there's a dogwood blight going around the country, so keep an eye on yours if you already have one up and going.
Fairy1004...I meant to ask you if in the wishlist #4 post photos you posted of your asters etc; if one of the photos on the far right is chocolate mint coleus?
Fairy I would love pink dogwood seeds or little seedlings added to our trade in the spring :) My cousin has a pink dog wood but I never get to catch the seeds before the birds get them and he never has seedlings, I never get seedlings off of my white dogwood either maybe because of cutting the grass around it but wish it would because it's old and on it's way out I need another planted to take it's place eventually.
What's this I hear about a dog wood blight? I can't lose my white dog wood before it's time what do we do for it? Do you know? I have a seedling that I planted last fall that's only 5" tall too :( He's only two years old!
There's no cure for the Dogwood blight (I believe it's actually Anthracnose) - just keep an eye on your baby and make sure that there's no trunk damage or chance of damage where bugs or water could creep in and introduce the opportunity. Also be aware of the leaves; here's a link with some info:
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-8175533.html
Thanks so much for the updated "wish lists". I've got LOTS of seeds and I'm doing my best to fill some of those wishes! Look for some "surprises" you guys! No, I don't want any seeds in return, just lot of pictures when the plants sprout and bloom!
Thank you so much Shirley. You bet we'll post pictures.
I look forward to seeing all those beautiful blooms!
Thank you Shirley!!! yes to posting pictures :) baby pictures too!
I'm getting excited, we just bought three shoplights to hang over soon to be purchased shelving for seed growing!!!!!! yippie...my first official plant rack with lights :)))))
Yeah, Wind, how fantastic. I hope everything grows great for you.
I'll keep you informed by sending complete slideshows of my "nursery" and its little babies. Sowing will start somewhere in February....
After reading everyone's posts about how to organize all the seed info we will need to start our seeds, I started playing with a new journal in Daves. So far I think it's going to work out well. I have all the seeds I need to start (as of now, after this swap I will have to add stuff I'm sure). I put a category for seeds just from this swap, so if anyone wants to check up on the little babies they've given me the oppurtunity to have-Lol- it would be in there. I put in all the ones I have tagged for now and I put who was sending it to me under 'location' so I can remember to thank them when I have seedlings. Now I'm just working on making the statuses so they have a shortened germination info on it. That way when I click on a status I will get a list of all the seeds I should be starting. I am using the tom clothier database as a reference. If anyone wants to check it out here it is http://davesgarden.com/community/journals/sj/meredith79/3344/
OH... that's pretty cool. You even have WHO you got it from.
i'm manually doing mine in Excel ... may have been faster in the Journal...
can you "print" a copy so you can run around by your WS containers jotting down notes??
I tried to make it so when you view the list by status I can just highlight and print the selection. I think the way the journal prints stuff is too confusing. Everytime I've tried to print anything it ends up printing my whole journal - which is way too long for me! I am always in my journal playing with new ideas on how to simplify it - only problem is I never delete any of the old stuff -Lol.
I usually do mine on excel too, but I thought suzys idea of being able to check out eachothers progress was cool - and now I end up seeing that being able to click on the status makes it easier to pull up every seed I should be starting. I started out just making my statuses - Winter Sow; Warm Sow; Special - but I am working on changing it over to things like 71-75 degrees / 2 wks - the second being how long they take to germ. I think that will make it easier to know which warm germ. types I should start first and which I should start last. So nothing gets too spindly indoors. The only thing is you need to make sure the statuses only apply to the new seed list - so if any of the statuses already existed I'd just click on that staus category first and change all of them to something like - finished.
Thanks TCS-I really appreciate you & your yodaness!! LeBug, Frausnow & Robynzest, please send me a Dmail so I can put it in my spring folder for the seedlings of the pink dogwood-from what Suzy said I may want to just send seeds-they may come more true than the seedlings??
Stacey -- it's so funny cuz DH called our dog Yoda... but it's because of the ears, not his wisdom. LOL.
glad i could track that down for you.
and Meredith -- i may still tackle the journal... sometimes multiple files is OK in my book... 'specially if i dont keep one of them up to date.. i always have another.... or at least my scribble pad somewhere....
tcs - I think the two is good - I lost all my seed starting info from last year because water spilled on my laptop and I lost everything - so now I wish I had it in my daves journal - because that's the only info I've got from last years seeds oh and from memory. I miss all my photos of my garden and my kids the most. boo hoo
OH uggg. Meredith... you didnt have a back up?? which reminds me.. i need to run one soon. i try to do it monthly.
especially with all the photos we have.... and data like that [plant/seed info is not replaceable]
so -yes having it on line too is something i really should do too.
one more "tool" here on Daves that I am finding indispensable is the Trade Tracker.
as i enter data into my spreadsheet [sometimes clicking adding it to the Journal]
I am entering where I got the seeds from ... most I can remember, but others i have to look up
and having all my trades in there has really helped.... as for this Swap... "most" of it is in the letter sent to Suzy ... so that shouldn't be too bad.
No I am really bad about backing up - so now I just make sure I at least load pics on the site I buy photos from. You'd think I'd learn my lesson.
well... i'm done with the spreadsheet until the seeds come in. Hopefully i got them all, but i'm sure there are a few that were swapped in Dmail and i did not go back and check.
now... i figure, i can just copy the scientific name out of Excel, search it in Daves, then just add to my Journal...
btw -- what is LOCATION for?? where i put it in my yard??
and i'm ONLY at 106 seeds.
hey tcs - I use location - as the spot I put some info I'd like to see when I select a category or status- so for my seeds I'm using it to put zone hardiness and wether it's annual or perennial + on the seed swap section I included the person name that is gracous enough to tag for me. Smile.
Oh, you're all so organised! I have certainly 300 different kinds of seeds to sow and that's without the box Suzy is going to send me. I simply don't have enough energy left to put it all in a spreadsheet.!
Luckily I'm quite good at remembering what went well and what not and why.....
Tuink.... i used the database that was listed here http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=4423044
the Tom Clothier one... and you can just adjust it for what you have, and tweak it to suit your needs.
I basically delete all the seeds that i do not have, and add ones that I do have. it was still a bit of work, but will work fine.
and since there are hundreds of seeds -- many of your may already be in there.... some may be similar, and just can be edited.
i did the same thing last year.
Actually, I did something similar tcs - I basically cut and paste all the stuff I had from Tom Clothier into the weeks that I intend to sow them.
If I can find time, I'll take a look at that.
Thanks, TCS
Hi all - anyone grown balloon flower from seed before? The germination info I have on it just says slow. I'm looking for an approximate amount of time to start before the last spring frost so it's ready to harden off in mid may. Any body done it not winter sown?
I have volunteers , but don'tknow when they germinate (obviously). I'm WS some colors I don't have, so LMK when you find out.
This message was edited Jan 21, 2008 10:53 AM
Hi Meredith,
I once sowed them under cover, on the windowsill. These were seeds harvested from plants that I bought at the garden center. They germinated without a problem. It's been a while but I don't remember it took an awful lot of time.....
This message was edited Jan 21, 2008 7:54 AM
Tuink - Thank you - I thought this was supposed to be an easy one from seed, but I've read a lot of different things.
Flowerhead - I will be trying to keep all my notes up to date in my journal, so if I forget to tell you you can check their too. It's here http://davesgarden.com/community/journals/sj/meredith79/3344/.
This message was edited Jan 21, 2008 9:33 AM
tcs -if you get a chance check my journal now, I finished giving most of the stuff (the only one I haven't done is the second chance swap category) the amount of weeks ahead It should be started and the date that is for me.
OK.. gotcha.... looks good.
I wonder.... can we change the heading for the columns .... I'm sure we can add a lot of columns, as i've seen some that are really "wide' with lots of columns.
Tcs - (columns)Click on add/change categories then click on the category and you can add a subcategory. I've learned that keeping the categories with no sub categories makes it easier for me (on my seed-list).
thanks -- i'll check it out later.
Tcs- I looked at your journal-When you are in your own journal - you can view things by status (others can't see 'view by status' from external view) Right now you have the status as unkown, if you change that to say WS(for winter sow) you will then be able to go back and see all the seeds you will need to winter sow by clicking on that status. This will be good when you have all your seeds listed, then you can have a status like DS(direct sow ) & Indoors, so you can click on indoors to see the seeds you need to start indoors. Etc. - I put my statuses as weeks & date to start - so now I can click on say 16wks-1/26 and see which seeds will need to be started. (Which is pretty much everything that needs to be winter sown). The view by status is at the bottom of each journal - it only shows statuses that apply to entries in the journal you are currently viewing. When I am all done starting my 16wks status - i can click on them and check the boxes and click change status - I will probably change the status to Sown 08, as I finish them. Too confusing?
Thanks Meredith --- I think i just need to spend the time in there. considering i'll have over 100 more to add -- and just finding that time. I still have to start working on WS'ing. I certainly do not have enough milk jugs... i think i only found 6 or 7. .... though i have not ventured out into the garage to see what i saved from last year.
It's almost like,..... too much to do, so little time.
Terese
I know what you mean! I wasn't going to winter sow this year - because I felt like it was more work preparing all the jugs and trying to find enough-Lol. I plan on starting my seeds(that need WS) in traditional seed starting trays and putting them on an unheated room for the amount of time they need cold. Then bringing them in and growing under lights until planting out time. I did a lot in jugs outside last year and I found that I neglected the winter sown stuff to the point that some containers that had 100's of sprouts were barren by the time I got to them. (To my pardon I was 9 months pregnant at planting out time, and I still managed to plant 100's of feet of other stuff) The ones that I did get to in time to save I had to pot up and grow on until fall (which kinda made more work for me -I felt). I know so many think ws-ing is so easy - but for me - I had a hard time with it.
I have 12 jugs planted. I'm just doing a little everyday, and I started two days ago. Today I think I will do another 12, but then I will be out of jugs. I'm going to take all of my glass & metal recyclables to the dump and then take someone's water jugsfrom there, that way they won't need excessive cleaning like a stinky milk jug. I'm a vegan, so I don't drink milk and we have great tap water here in the sticks so I don't buy water. I've been trying, when I'm out and about and need a drink of water, to buy the gallon size. This, of course, means I'm driving down the road spilling water on myself trying to take a drink. LOL! The price we pay.....
Meredith, I still think the platycodon will be easy, because we have quite a few volunteers from plants we deadhead, so there aren't many seeds hiding out. Where is Hudson?
Flowerhead-Hudson is right next door to nashua, on the mass line. We will have to get together for some plant trading some time. Lol.