Let's talk containers...post yours here

I highly recommend much bigger containers for better results.

Karen

'Cause Lorraine, you can't plant the whole thing the way you would with a peat pot. On the other hand, i bow to regional differences.

x, Carrie

Besides, poppies transplant just fine. Don't believe rumors.

This photo shows some of my poppies in 2 liter pop bottles 3/3/06

I had several milk jugs and 2 liters of poppies, transplanted when very small by hos, in adulthood they looked like this.

And this

Pretty, pretty, pretty poppies! And are those batchelor buttons with them?

Now do your poppies come back -- self seeding maybe?

Yes, tabasco, they were planted with BBs and I loved the combination of colors.

I didn't give them time to set seed. They pretty much bolted as soon as summer heat arrived, so I yanked them. They were large, took up a lot of garden real estate, and didn't last long enough. I decided I didn't want them again for a while. I need things that tolerate our hot summers.

The only poppies I have left are a few Islandic ones, and they might be living on borrowed time! They're pretty but also not wild about our summer heat, and the stems are kind of weak They have to perform better this year or they'll be compost food, too.

Karen

Good gracious!! you're ruthless! And you have lots of yard space!

But, truth be told, I had the same issues with them!

Come on now, I think they are so cute, maybe not useful but cute. Besides, ya'll are just jealous cause you didn't think of it LOL LOL LOLI do all sorts of crazy things at 3 in the morning when I should be asleep
I'm not going to put any really delicate plants in those. Last year I had some things in plastic and very very very gently cut the bottom off, then cut the sides off in strips. I have just never ever had luck with the little peat pots that come in the 6 packs. I'm just not good with them, I guess. I hardly ever have them germinate. I do ok with the little round ones so I get those.
I think ya'll should all come here when it's time to put them out and help me cut sides off pudding cups!!! Then I can admit I was stupid and tell you that you were right!!!lol

Hey! She's calling me names!

Seriously, I guess I have become ruthless with my plants. I used to baby them for years, only to end up yanking them after a lot of wasted effort in trying to save them. Now, with wintersowing, it's just so easy to replace them with something else if they don't measure up. The number of things out there to try is almost without limit.

For me, half the fun is in experimenting with different things. I research many things on the web first, (which I enjoy) , obtain the seeds, have fun wintersowing, then continue the experiment after planting. I guess I look at it as one big game, a circle of discovering the seed and researching> sowing > growing> enjoying it's beauty, > >>> often ending in composting it and returning it to earth.

I also love my compost and composting, but that is another whole ball of wax. All in all, when I step out of these 4 walls, I'm in my playground :-). And since my playground is now under layers and layers of ice and snow, I can't go out to play, so I gravitate to my virtual playground, the computer.

Karen

Karen,

Your containers and flowcharts and database and seeds aren't your virtual playground? And may I use that poppy picture in an article I am trying to write for DG? Today I started a bunch of freesia corms in pots in the only eligible window, under the dining room table.

xx, Carrie

I never knew there were so many people who loved playing in the dirt as much as me!!!! And here I've found "my kind"
I love the WS, but I'm afraid I did germinate some inside too I could watch every second of it
Course in Texas it'd more like fall sowing

Lorraine: Probably the most important thing I have learned in my 2 years of wintersowing: Watch what the seasoned veterans do, follow their suggestions to success.

I first learned about wintersowing on GardenWeb's WSing forum, and still remain an active member there. I read and studied the threads to see what the experts (i.e. those sowing hundreds of containers for many years, like Trudi and some of her long time fellow wintersowers) did, how they did it, and what worked best for them. I paid most attention to those in my growing zone 6.

Of course I had to try everything despite what was most widely accepted as best. I used mostly big jugs with 3-4 inches of soil as recommended by the experts , but tried a few shallow deli trays, peat pots, paper pots, etc. I found that those experts were absolutely right. Nothing beats milk jugs and 2 liters with 3-4 inches of soil. And tansplanting anything by hos works.

Karen

Oh, I know, I'm just stubborn, gotta mess things up real good, before I get help.

I have a lot in milk jugs, I just don't get that many. I live alone, so I don't use a lot, and I'm not brave enough to go into trash cans. Well, I do, but just my daughters. I wish I could have put everything in them and I love the 2 litre bottles too. I use a lot of flavored water, so usually have those too
I just panic when I don't have one to plant in. It will be planting time here in just a few weeks, so I panic when I don't have those and start running around looking for stuff.

I lucked out this year. My friend lives in a rural area in Indiana, has a cistern, and buys all of her drinking water in gallon jugs. I got a lot from her this year. I collect milk jugs from other people too, and go through neighbors recycle bins on garbage days. I really do give them a lot of grief if they trash one instead of donating to me.

My husband and I use very little milk, and don't buy bottled water.

Karen

Lorraine,

Things were looking grim for me too, until my DD's birthday part last month - 2 liter soda bottles!!! How about a church youth group? Churches are always nice and helpful. Do not give up. (Do you eat that pudding?)

xx, Carrie

No, I've just been keeping them forever. I'm Irish and Scotch, what can I say!! Also my daughter buys it for her boys, so I just collect them up. I won't do very many, I just wanted to see what happens.
I told my daughter she needed to buy her Dr. Pepper's in 2 litres instead of cans!!!

The pudding cups are cute.
I planted a lot of yogurt cups. They are probably a little too small too but maybe will be OK since I can plant out pretty early.
Kqcrna, how much bigger did you let the poppies that are in the picture get before you planted them out? I have some a little bigger than that but they look so fragile I'm afraid of hurting the little things.
I probably should have planted the poppies in the fall here, like I understand most do, but just didn't get around to it. They will probably die from heat before they are big enough to bloom. But, it's all fun to experiment and learn and there is always next year.

It's only FEB! I'm not even done sowing for this year, and she says "there's always next year!"

x, Carrie

Umm Sorry?

Sorry - I seem to be getting that reaction from a lot of people today! "Hunh?"

There's like 5 - 8" of snow outside, there's plenty of time to order seeds AND plant perennials still, and only just time to start thinking about annuals like sweet peas and nasturtiums, nowhere near time for most veggies or tender annuals yet. It was funny to have you say "there's always next year" when I'm just getting going on this year! Obviously our climates are extremely different!!! I wish I could beam back and forth.

xx, Carrie

pestee: I can't remember exactly what size the poppies were, but very tiny. Probably about 2 sets of true leaves. That was in 2006 and I know I planted the poppies and BBs out first. I had several jugs of poppies, but I only recorded when I planted out one kind. The Flanders poppies were planted out into beds on March 30, the others soon after. Obviously, they were tiny.

Karen

Pestee, I know they are small, but they are as big or bigger than those little peat things from Jiffy and others. These hold 3.5 oz. and the peat holds 2.5, so......................... I'm like you, they will be taken out before they outgrow them.
Does anyone have a picture of the poppy seedlings. I have no idea what they look like and of course got all my germinated plants mixed up.

Okay, here's a laugh at my expense for you to end your day in a laughing fit.

Everyone has been talking about the milk jusgs and 2 litre bottles.
I drink a lot of the flavored water and I buy the big bottles. So, I thought oh good, I have
or will have plenty of those.
So I started using them, and always wondered why everyone liked them so much, they didn't seem to
hold that much. Then today, I was at my daughter's house and had taken some water with me.
She had a 2 litre Dr. Pepper sitting out. I looked at it , then l ooked at my bottle.
I've been using the 1 litre bottles. (Ok, stop laughing, ) No wonder it seemed like the 2 litre bottles held so little

Lorraine: I posted a photo of poppy seedlings in 2 liter bottles higher up in this thread.

Karen

Thanks, K. that helps, now I'll look through all my "1 litre" bottles and find them!! Your bottles look like mine, with duct tape you can do anything.
I asked my grandson if he could do something and he wanted to know if I had duct tape and WD40. I asked why and he said with those two things he could fix the world

Carrie, No problem, I have to remember all of our environments are so different. I'm feeling springish already and it's hard for me to think of March as winter sowing. I will have to remind myself that's not the norm for most of the country. Of course in July and August I'll be sweating up a storm just walking from the house to the car. No fun.
kqcrna, I'm going to go ahead and plant my poppies and just be gentle. They do have at least two sets of leaves now. Yours were sure pretty.
Lorraine, let us know how the little pudding cups do.

Yeah! If it is supposed to move and it doesn't you use the WD-40. If it moves and it is not supposed to you use the duct tape.

I'm sure they'll probably not do well, but I had to try it.!!!

Oh, I bet they will do fine.

dear yardspace1948 - gotta love that formula for duct tape & WD40!

This is my first year wintersowing, we have been having lots of a little snow here between the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, and lots of rain, hope it is enough to cure our lack of rain last year. I've been able to sow in 2 gallon jugs but am getting ready to do my veggies in 2 liter soda bottles. I just started sowing on 2/7/08, so nothing has sprouted yet. Every day when I get home from work, my sheltie, Bonnie, and I tour the "estate" and check out the bottles, the buds, try to find those perrenial tulips I planted all over my yard last fall. I think the deer got those. It is the first time I've had a problem with browsing deer, we have so many corn fields around us, guess that drought last summer has longer lasting effects than I first thought! I will have to make wire tepees for any remaining tulips (2 or 3 out of 24! OH Well!)

Carrie - Spring is all in the mind anyway, soon soon soon!

Pam

You mean I'm not the only one making my rounds.
Got to tell you about my aquarium.
I took a 70 gallon aquarium put a lot of winter sowing things in there. Noticed they were coming up , not all but a lot. I had glass over the top. Soooooo, I took the ones that had not sprouted yet, put them somewhere else in the same area, then went around and got most of the ones that had sprouted, took the plastic off, put them in aquarium. Was I wrong to do that. A lot of the ones that had started growing were getting 6 or 6 inches tall and thought that would be a nice greenhouse for them. I cocked the glass to it get air.

Tell me if it's ok, so I don't have to go to the woods and hang myself if it isn't

don't hang yourself! I would think in your zone, nothing would need a lid anymore at all! Up here, we all cut the tops off of the containers as soon as we think it's safe. I think 6 - 8" tall is an adolescent plant that just needs water (in TX) from this point!

x, Carrie

I agree with Carrie: Isn't the weather warm enough for no tops now in Texas? What are your temps now, day and night average? If it's warm you might fry everything. Do you have a soil or compost thermometer to measure the temp in that aquarium? Drainage?

I open or remove the top half of milk jugs as soon as days are 40-50 and nights above freezing for annuals. Perennials get opened sooner.

Karen

Told ya! :>)

And what do you have that's 6-8" tall and not planted out yet?

Karen

LorraineR I'm so glad you asked that question concerning your aquarium. I couldn't remember when I took the tops off my plants last year to save my soul. I just ran out side and unlatched my milk jug hindges after reading Carries reply.
Your aquarium is a great idea. I'd love to hear what you did about watering & drainage. I used mine for cuttings with moist sand but haven't try it with winter sowing. I do have a suggestion for ya. I'd make sure everything in there is the same seed. I had a mess with some inside sowing I did with one of those long 72 cell trays. Taking out and putting in is extra work, but all the same seed would give you more of an equal germination time for the whole "pot". My inside lessons learned for next from advice I received from Tuinkabouter. Now I pass on that advice to you, Hon.

Of course I didn't think of putting all the same thing in theere. That would mean I had a brain, and we sure wouldn't want that.
I put bricks in the bottom so if rain did get in there they would be up a little higher. The way I get the water out> Well, I go out there, take every single plant out , turn it over and pour the water out.
Yes, it takes forever......
I have nasturium that's big, batchelor buttoons, some rose of sharon and sweet peas are 6 to 8 inches. So, I should just take the glass off the top. Yes it is warm here. Last week it got down to 34, this week it's been at the lowest 44 at night and it's been in the 70's in the day. BUT, I know we'll have another freeze before Easter. We always do for some reason. Sometmes March is pretty cold, so I've abeen worried about taking them out and taking tops off everything.

Oh, Lorraine so you have individual seed pots sitting in the aquairum, not the whole aquairum filled up with soil. Well that's a horse of a different color then. I misunderstood. You've a brain and it's a keeper unless you'd like to trade with me. Do you know anyone with a glass cutter?

If I trade, can I give you all the bad stuff too? My brain is loaded with it