I had to giggle when Wind said her summer skies where blooming...here I am in the south thinking I know it's been great with the recent warm up and then it hit me she was talking about her seedlings LOL I am a goober...
My coleus is coming up pretty well at this point
and the Thunbergia has a good headstart along with the forget me nots, Red sunflowers and bachelors button..
and the bearded iris's in the outdoor GH would really appreciate spring arriving and staying! LOL we are supposed to get down to 23 tonite...time to turn the heater in there back up...
Got my first FLOWERS on the pansies . . . I will try to remember to take a picture today!
seandor, how did you start and grow them? I figure pansies have similar needs to violas, right?
I'm still up in arms over the violas (cornuta). It seems most of the info I have found about giving them darkness has been from seed companies and not from peer reviewed scientific resources. The only scientific document I have found so far, says they need light to germinate....go figure....I'm also unsure of the temperature.
I put the seeds out in the cold for 24hrs then started them inside under cover. After my research however, I took them out of the black plastic I had covering them and now they are by a window in indirect light.
can't wait to see your photo....I can't believe you have blooms already, how wonderful :)
I actually have two different kinds of geraniums sprouting next to each other; the 'Summer Showers' and the Striatum 'Splish Splash'.
Well, I guess they are actually the violet picotee violas that we received. :-)
Oh Robin, you are so much further along than I am lol I'm jealous, life has just been getting in the way here and now I was WS and some how got some lids to my jugs mixed up lol I've never done that and so far I've done it with three this year LOL I did finally find some of my notes from last year!
I did splish splash out in the spring last year and got quite a few seedlings, I'm trying some downstairs this year, I gave all but two away last year lol Story of my life, I grow the plants then give them away thinking I've got enough LOL
Talking to you Robin just reminded me to check my violets in the closet lol I have all kinds germinating and apparently they have been going for a while they are leggy! I forgot about them! I planted gazanzia in there too and all kinds of those came up didn't even think they would germinate lol Boy am I in trouble! LOL
Oh, Seandor I want to see pictures of that one (picotee violas) I have some of them coming up too from the swap :)
My violas are in bud as well. I had to do a double-take the other day when I noticed that.
Oh no! mine (violets) are so leggy and the stems are so thin and some are at least an inch tall I'm afraid to take them out and put them in dirt! What to do, I'm putting them under lights and hope that they get a little stockier real soon so I can transplant them! I may try one just to see if I can do it lol I knew I would forget about them in the closet!
Can't take a picture until the battery recharges grrrrrrrrrr.
Lea, if they aren't in soil, what are they in to germinate?
People with bad memories and/or busy lives shouldn't do the baggie method...what are you going to do with little threads of seedlings? I had that happen on my first try -- Primroses that were supposed to take a month to germinate, germinated in 5 days, I think. Dunno, I wasn't watching them. I tried to batch transplant, but none lived...this year, I can't get them to germinate at all. Go figure!
Suzy
[tail btwn legs] ... I lied.
It's my impatiens that have buds on them -- I think that they are from the 1st CG swap, not the Swa-op ... Suzy, what was that you were saying about bad memories?
They are in my pro mix in a seed tray just worried about transplanting them to their own pot or 6 packs, sorry I was at the neighbors to see her grandbaby and then outside fidling around and going back out for a bit, feels soo good to be outside! LOL I bought my dog a new tie and of course I want to use it today and can't find it! Just saw it the other day LOL
I have hellebores in the fridge in a baggie but don't think I will have to worry about them for a while, but when it comes time I'll have to put note everywhere so I don't forget them :) Have no idea what I'm doing with them so maybe I'll luck out and at least one will germinate I've tried them a couple of times with no luck and these were fresh seeds. Any body have any pointer for how to get them to germinate, all tips are apprecipated LOL
LOL Wrightie!
Ok, I have a few, not many, violets in one of the seed trays and was wondering if anyone thinks they would be alright if I went ahead and put them in dirt, the seed is still on it a little bit so they are young, there are only two or three I think and quite a few to go to germinate in there yet, this is the last seed tray thank goodness!
I have flipped past that packet of violas I don't know how many times. I have never grown them before and they seem like a lot of work and kind of intimidating. I am the same way with pansies. I always get confused on things that have 2 different sowing times and go from dark to light or warm to cold....LOL. I suppose I'm too late to get them going now?
La, I just started mine a couple weeks ago but I thought I was late doing that, not sure how big they will be when I set them out but I figured I'd just plant like half of them then start the rest in July like Suzy was talking about, I'm hoping the ones I plant in the spring will reseed for me so wasn't really worried about them this go around I just wanted to see one or two blooms just to see what they looked like :) I have a feeling though it may be too hot for them to be happy by the time they start blooming, it may be too hot if it starts that heat early like it did last year here. I bet Suzy would know :) If she didn't I would be surprised lol
It took mine less than 8 days to germinate I'm sure of that by how tall they were when I remembered them! Probably about 6 days. I still have a tray in the drawer in the extra bedroom, the closet on the floor seemed a little cool although they did germinate really nice, so I still have some planted lol
Those seeds of the veronica you were talking about in the other thread, I ended up with about four varieties thru the swap so I won’t be hurtin :) Is it possible that I was talking about the red fox veronica, I bet it was and I got some of those from Fairy :) I skimmed thru the dmail and then saw we had a trade going for the spring, I had a virus a few months ago so I’ve had a time trying to figure what I owe in trades lately, I lost my folder that I had them in, this year I will be using the trade tracker but when you are just chatting about trades it’s kind of hard to just make a list in there so I tend to just stay in word. It’s going to be a trip going thru all of those dmails when you talk as much as I do to get my trades straightened out and when am I going to find the time, does anybody have any extra time to trade for? LOL
Well I gotta get I have 9 shot glasses of seeds soaking in that need to get into seed trays and darn it I haven't figured out a way to train them yet to jump in the seed trays and cover up, what is up with that???
I found our old trade Lea. You sent me the one from T & M., and actually I sent YOU the Red Fox. LOL
Anyway, thanks again....off for more planting!
Hmmm I wonder where that foxy seed is lol I probably have it filed wrong lol
My neighbor's daughter is going to help me figure my camera out so maybe I can get some pictures of my babies after this week, I'm kind of excited about that, I haven't had time to figure it out since I got it and don't want to miss out on those spring flowers coming either, yeah :) She's going to do it for a box of girlscout cookies lol
Lea, I would go ahead and get them (violas/pannnsies that have germinated) in soilless mix.
The hellebores are the quintessential wintersowing seed...get them outside is my advice, into a self-remembering milk jug. :)) I had a race with somebody last year on some...I ws'ed mine and she put hers in a pot in the garage. I *think* she forgot to water them, or was afraid to water them, and I *think* hers didn't do very well. I had about 50% germination, and they are up this year, I just saw them when I did a little garden clean up...cute little devils! And not so small, either!
Lala_ J,
You are so far north of Lea - would you say your summers are hotter than hades, or just regular hot? LOL! Those pansies like a cool summer and poeter out when the heat comes on, especially the kind of heat that makes us people want to stay inside...and I'm not sure if you are far enough north to have cool summers. Can you grow White birches up there?
Sun in the winter and cool in the summer. Under deciduous trees is a good place, so they get the spring sun angled in at them, but the shade when the sun is at its highest. But under deciduous trees, they don't always get the water they need because of the tree roots.
Wrightie and Seanndor, Congratualtions on your plants and babies and FLOWER buds! Wow! I am getting a late start on mine...things aren't germinating as well as last year at this time, and I can only attribute it to the low temperature in the basement which is so dependent on the outside temps because of the steps to the outside. Last year at this time, we were having 60-70 degree temps with high 40s at night, and this year it's still freezing cold, day and night. That's all I can figure out, anyway. I haven't even look at my ws pots outside, but I guess I will tomorrow.
I have 3" sq. long-pots in flats on a table outside. Some seeds get a 6" pot if I am growing a lot of them. Over these are some upside down bulb crates to keep the plastic off the pots. Then I have a gigantic piece of clear plastic over the whole table which drops down to the ground like a formal table cloth. When I first put it out, the wind blows the plastic around, so I have some weights over the top, but once it freezes and gets snow on it, it doesn't blow around. I'm not sure what will happen in spring. Last year I did milk jugs, but it looked so darn trashy that neither Mr. Clean NOR I!! could stand it.
I found some gorgeous 20 x 24 pots at Costco...OMG! I got them home and they are toooooo big! What was I thinking?
Suzy
Suzy, plant something bigger LOL you could do some great combinations of larger annuals in those pots. maybe with a vine on a trellis in the middle.
ok, just like a lot of you, I have the first 2 burgundy geraniums that germinated about an inch tall now and no more have germed yet. I should prick those out and pot up, right? or wait for true leaves?
Suzy, can you plant your cannas in those pots from Costco? Maybe that was what you were thinking lol I've yet to find a couple of big pots, we have a costco in Louisville but I don't think we have one over here I bet Sam's would have some hmmm I may have to call a friend to take me there I'm not a member.
grampapa, I'd wait for true leaves first sometimes those geraniums can be a little picky :) They come out pretty fast :)
good morning :) I ws more seeds yesterday, and plant to ws more today too! I was so excited Fri. driving home my car just swerved into ...a garden center what else!!
my first garden center stop of the season!!! I bought a really nice large ceramic glazed pot on sale and noticed that all their heat mats were 50% off and the prices look really good. I'll probably buy a heat mat next week! I wasn't planning on it until next year but they had all size mats for $16.99 -$30.00, very affordable.
I also got plant food and I did buy miracle grow. I know the negative publicity they have gotten etc but I've found you have to carefully read the ingredient label and select a % that won't harm your plants and only use as directed. Ammonium phosphate, potassium phosphate and urea are commonly used to yield the beneficial nitrogen etc.
I'm trying their 'quick start' solution which is designed for transplants. LeBug the ratio is similar to the seedling food you posted the link to. This one is 4-12-4
gram, I transplanted mine after they got their first set of true leaves, well actually one nice true leaf, and I've only transpanted one so far.
Yes, Susy, I would plant dramatic cana lilies in your big pots and under plant them with some other stuff for a stunning container :-)
thanks, gals. true leaves it is, then.
oh yes, cannas for the big pots! sensational!! you could underplant with all kinds of good stuff.
they have some nice pots at BestNest and there's free shipping if you spend over $75 (which adds up pretty quick if you're buying pots). I am looking at their obelisks that can be used in a large pot, too. I get my bird seed and supplies from them. why buy it locally and drag it home when I can get it delivered? it's so hard for me to get out a lot of the time. I'm sure you get better prices at Costco. I might be going to BJ's with a friend soon, so I can look there.
http://www.bestnest.com/bestnest/standing_pots_planters.asp
Brugmansias in the big pots, too ... and fig trees ... and bananas ... and ... and ... and ...
Suzy, I did water the Hellebore pots in the garage -- but only a few sprouted! I've got the remaining pots outside now, so we'll see if anything happens with them this spring. I'm glad to know you had good luck winter sowing your seeds. I may try them again next year.
adding... the watering "issue" was because the directions that came with the seeds had me really paranoid about overwatering and fungus issues... and with the half inch of sand that they said to put on top of the pots, I had a really hard time telling anything about the moistness of the potting mix! I fretted way too much over those pots, LOL.
Well, this might be living dangerously, but I have put the flats of violas outside on the blacktop driveway to get some real sun. Current temperature outside is 31 degrees. But on the tarmac, I suspect it is closer to 50 degrees. There is a bit of a cool breeze blowing . . . I hope I don't sunburn these babies. :-)
They look pretty funny - there is a background of snow behind them.
seandor they will probably love it...tomorrow is supposed to be even nicer around here. Mine aren't sprouting yet or I would do the same
I have had pansies in a sunny spot on our porch all winter and they are starting to perk up today :)
I am going to try planting out pansies in the fall and see what happens next spring :-)
Well I think our summers are hotter than 'H' LOL I planted all summer last year and thought I was going to die! It doesn' do any good to come in the air conditioning it just makes you feel worse, if it gets hotter somewhere else like Texas I don't want to be there just can't imagine it )
Ok I'm doing my violets and pansies tomorrow time is running out on me today, just had to get outside while it was still pretty when I got home from town, I have spring fever today sooo bad! Darn I was going to stop at wally world and check their pots out before I came home, seems like the bigger pots are cheaper now than the summer, does anyone else think that or is it just me, I hate paying those big prices for big pots! I need to go to some flea markets but when I do I never find anything that suits my fancy :) I'm going to the garden center to check heat mats out tomorrow and see if ours have them on sale! I have to take dad to the doctor early in the morning so I need to do something to fill the time in so he can go out and eat at 12 lol That's my excuse anyway, only thing is he won't get out of the car if I go in and I always feel guilty leaving him in there lol That way he won't see what I spend on pots lol I don't have a DH to answer to but I do have dear old dad lol
I saved some pansies and violets to plant in June or July like you were talking about Suzy, I was a good girl just wanted to try them for the spring and see what they would do :) So just stick my Hellebores in the garage, ok I can do that do they stay in there until spring or what? Will it hurt them if I keep them in the baggie, probably not becaue of the deno method, ok. I had violets bloom all summer by the garage but they are the cornauta is that right? lol I put some seed there last summer of some others so maybe they will come up this spring it was the ones with the gold rim and they were dark, I hope they come up I almost forgot I had put them there.
speaking of violas....my Viola cornuta ‘penny purple picotee’ are sprouting only 8 days!!!
now, should I place them under 'lights' or is that too direct for violas?
I'm sowing violas today for sure. I want them so bad I can just see them in the garden... all over. Under the roses, in the rock garden, around the creeping thyme in the fairy garden, here and there in the herb garden... everywhere (sigh, can't wait)
Wind, my PPP violas are doing just fine under lights, FWIW.
Yes, get the Violas/pansies under lights. They like sun, just not the hot summer sun.
Suzy
Suzy, I found some pretty Gold Dust (yellow) alyssum at wally world today it says it gets 8-12" tall, will that be too tall for the geraniums I forget how tall they will get. I can't believe I couldn't find something in all of these seeds that I have LOL
