Wow! That sunflower garden is going to be awesome! I can hardly wait to see the pictures of it in full bloom. The antenna ball is just too cute :-)
I love Marsh Marigolds. One of the things I want to do on my property over the next couple of years is build a stream and have marsh marigolds, pussy willows, and lots of other plants that remind me of my childhood.
Try not to catch that flu bug yourself. There are indeed some nasty ones floating around the country right now.
What's in doing in your part of the country??? Pt.2
Growin, how exciting to work in a nursery, bet you just want to take all the plants home..
Ginnylynn..there were accidents all over caused by stupidity..we were driving the 400N just south of Innisfil and a 4x4 must have been doing 140kl..we were doing 90kl which most were doing, he had to slam on his brakes, ditch bound, just wanted to stop and say: ha/ha/ha..usually it's the other person minding their p's and q's that gets hurt..
Let's hope soon this winter will all be behind us..then we content with cottage country traffic..lol..can't win..
I love sunflowers..as I've only recently - within the past 3 years - have really gotten into gardening I've tried my hand at sunflowers, but only from seeds and haven't been successful..do you have any suggestions on proper soil..etc
Hey Betty - what do you mean by "haven't been successful" with sunflowers? What kind of problems have you been having with them? I'll try to help if I can from my own experiences with them.
One thing you can do if germination has been an issue for you is to pre-sprout them using the coffee filter/baggy method before you put them out in the garden soil. That way you'll only be planting the ones that are actually going to grow for you. You don't need to actually get the whole plant growing indoors and then transplant outside. They actually often resent being transplanted, so it's a good idea to just let them start germinating and then get them in the garden right away. So don't start them before the risk of frost is gone.
If you can get them to sprout and grow but they fall over, that's a common problem. Many of them require staking to stand upright once they start to flower. The weight of the flower heads is just too much - especially in wind and/or rain. They have a fairly shallow root system and will sometimes just topple over if the soil gets too wet and mushy. They need lots of sun, and don't plant them too close to a wall or other structure. They'll lean out trying to get away from it and end up being even less able to stand straight on their own.
What a great post of information..already I've made an error..have them in wet paper towels in zip lock bags but I think it's a little early though as I'll not be able to transplant until late May this year (perhaps even June)..so better be picking up more seeds and will wait to do your method..
Actually where I planted them was in full sunshine, not near a building but not a lot of earth, perhaps I needed better soil..not going to give up because lordy they are beautiful..
Got up this morning with a few inches of snow, it's melting away at this point, very cloudy, and it looks like it started raining.
Joanne, my corkscrew vines are growing fast too, need to find something to make them climb on, it's almost reaching the wire shelf on top of them. I'll have to get them out of there soon, before they grab on to it. I bought a few extra seeds, to add with them, I have a problem with the leaves, they're full of holes. Don't know what's causing that. Do you have that problem? Here's a picture of it.
Don't discard those sunflowers in the making! Just because you may have started them a little early don't think they'll fail for sure. When you pot the sprouted ones up just line the container with newspaper first. Poke holes all around the newspaper and in the bottom too, then dampen it well and fill with potting medium. Then when you go to transplant them to the garden you can take the inner newspaper liner with them and not disturb the roots at all.
Burn - wow - those are growing fast! I was thinking they were going to be fussy, for some reason. Not sure what's going on with your leaves though...
Well, me too, from what I was reading, they seem to need a long growing period before they flower, Oh but .......for us, that means earlier flowers. ;)
Growin, since you work in plants, would you know, what would cause the holes in the leaves? That's how they come out,damaged. And Jenny, if you know anything about this problem, give me your input, or Todd... anyone.
Announcing sunny for tomorrow yayyyyy.
I was wondering what was up with the leaves. There may be some bug that's chewing the leaves before they emerge and they come out with holes. Have you looked closely at the growing point and the soil? It almost looks like the leaves are lacking something. Are the seedlings getting enough light, food? I've also seen it with perlite for some reason.
It was sunny, rainy, cloudy, windy and then one major hail storm with lightening and sun in downtown Vancouver. Took out the power. Took me 45 minutes to get home from the other end of downtown.
Camellia japonica 'Peter Pan' @ the Seattle Arboretum
Overcast today in the city and they are calling for a few flurries clearing up tomorrow aft. - high of 6 for the weekend, oh happy days..even though it was 7am this morning when I left, I could hear run-off down the township drain at the end of my drive..so gradually should be seeing visable melting of the snowbanks..must go though and remove some of the debris that is floating along from the top of the hill..joys of living at the bottom of the hill..lol..
Most of my seeds in plastic bags were done last weekend, so perhaps I'll check them out..not sure, if the paper towel is dry, if I should add water to the inside of the bag....terrible, have not much experience in early seeding, but I'll learn and with all you find people I'm gaining knowledge already..
I've so many things planned for the weekend...Fridays we're off at 1:00 but this week because I've tests at the hospital early morning I will not be travelling to the city after they are done..so, fun/fun/fun...going to pick up the new jigsaw that you can attach a router bit to and make more birdhouses/birdfeeders so that when spring finally arrives, I'll have many goodies at hand to decorate my gardens...that should past the time of day...lol
My experiences with early seedings in the house have also been kinda awful Betty. The tomato seedlings got 'wispy and gangly' in no particular order .. then they croaked because .. plain and simple .. I had started too early .. :-(
The only thing I sorta PRE start now is my Nasturtiums and Morning Glory .. and they just get the 48 hour soak in a paper towel in a saucer ..
I don't have a GreenHouse (yet) .. :-) and the space factor for the seedlings in the kitchen is a bit of a stretch ..
Our drainage ditches out here in the country are perkin along .. once I see a 'Marsh Marigold' (Moose Marigold) group in the ditches .. THEN I'll haul out the flip flops :-)
~M~
Ok, who's the wiseguy who order this white stuff?
Growin,
Looks soooo springish. Still very brown in Calgary. It will be late May here to compare to your picture.
Crazy weather. It's sticking in some areas.
Acer palmatum 'Katsura'
Growin 80) glad it not here. Your trees are still pretty though. Thanks for answering my ?. Upon close examination with a magnifying glass, found spider mites, Spray it with Neem oil, hope that stuff isn't to strong for seedlings.
Sun came out this morning, now it's hiding behind the clouds, turned gray again. Having a hard time to get a full day of sun. Same thing happened yesterday, but with snow, in the afternoon.
Myself, I use Safers soap. I think its mild, except for the smell. I thought Neem is carcinogenic - or am I mistaken? With spidermites spray underneath the leaves and at the leaf axis.
Camellia 'Pink Perfection' from yesterday.
I use Safer's for spider mites too. If the infestation is fairly severe though, first I take the plants into the bathroom and give them a good shower. That gets rid of most of the little nasties first, then the Safers will do the rest. If you have a problem with repeated infestations this can help to at least lengthen the time in between.
Have you tried Neem Oil?
I had just bought the stuff, and tried it for the first time yesterday. Don't know about carcinogenic. I had read on the brugmansia forum, that they use it for spider mites, it suppose to be organic, from what I've read about it.
I resprayed the leaves today with dish soap solution, on the underside and leaves axis like Growin mention, because I hadn't done it right yesterday.
Thanks Ginnylynn, I'll try that next time, if the problem reoccur, and if I don't lose my seedling. :)
To get back on the subject of this thread, They're announcing really cold tonight, but sunny tomorrow. I'm really really hoping, they're right about the Sun part.
I'll keep my fingers crossed for you :-)
A gloriously sunny day here again. Not as warm as it should be for this time of year but at least it's bright!
Almost evening time, and let's just keep gabbing as we have, if weather happens to be mentioned ok, if not, it's ok as well...always open for discussion..
It was ( - ? ) today, not sure the exact temp but the sun was very shinny, didn't warm things up enough though to thaw..now they are calling for rain Mon. Tues. so let's hope not enough to flood anyone..river banks sure are high though..
Son came early this morning to install the stained glass front door I purchased, never saw anyone work so quickly, but then he had quite a few men at his house waiting for him to go snowmobiling..he might get tomorrow out of the season but not sure many more days..he is hoping though...
My other son is thinking spring, gone to a mortorbike race and to look a new ones for he and the boys so he's thinking spring....
Me, I just want my garden..but I have worked all aft. trying to finish the thatched roof on the gazebo birdfeeder...
Don't let anyone tell you (as did the large print at the top of the page) that it's a morning project...lol...right..maybe putting the main frame together but certainly not all the details.. but that's ok..I'll have 3 new feeders to put out, 1 chickmunk feeder and a few birdhouses...come on spring..I'm ready for you...
I could not believe those ziplock bags, i.e. the ones with sunflower seeds in it, well they must be close to 2" and that is just since last Sunday..amazing..so perhaps tomorrow I'll go to the nursery if one is yet open if not to Walmart to get some potting soil and transplant...
I sure am hoping I can get even 1/2 of those seedlings into my garden..you've brought me luck with my early seeding..
Are spider mites something you sometimes get when you purchase a plant? or are their growings in the soil?
Spider mites come from plants you bring into the house, from open windows that blow them in, from people's clothing after they've brushed a plant with mites, etc, etc. Always a good idea to vacuum after spraying an indoor plant. The warmer & drier, the more chance they'll be around. Regular misting with a mister, particularly under the leaves, reduces spider mite infestations.
Today one of the other community gardeners was out there tilling his soil so I got out there and moved some compost into mine too. And then a few others joined in. Just a few moments ago it started snowing/hailing so I came inside. Weird weather.
Lithodora diffusa 'White Star'
SLUDGE & MUD and big drippy ol icicles :-) That's the recipe for todays weather menu .. BUT .. it was SUNNY!!!!!
My Delphinium (cut right down in fall) has GREEN twitch grass pokin through it's roots :-( Twitch grass is MY personal nemesis.
I am SURE spring is NOT too far away !!
:-)
~M~
You know growin, I think those spider mites came in, with a mini rose I bought at Walmart, about a month ago. It lost all it's leaves, and the little trunks are brown, I think it's a gonner. At first, I thought, it had to do, with the cold temp from the store to here. But now I suspect more the mites.
I bought some workshop lights, and the tube light, I bought for it, say plant and aquarium. I'll set that up over my seedling. How many hours of light should I set my timer at? Ginnylynn fingers and toes crossed. ;)
Had a very nice Spring day today, felt good to have a full day of sun. Went for a ride with DH, and brought Step Dad and Aunt along for a ride, to get them out of those rooms at old folks home. I wouldn't want to live, that long, and be stuck like that.
Betty, I can't wait to see your new bird feeders. And what you did with that lighthouse. I work on weaving a birdhouse yesterday, with rafia. Still have a few things to do to it.
OMG Burn I love it..how creative is that..must have taken you an eternity..how kind of you to take Aunt/Uncle out for a drive..my grandmother / grandfather raised me (parents worked on the shiplines) and my grandmother went into a home at the age of 92 and lived to 99..each and every Sat. morning at 9:30 I'd drop in and we'd go riding and enjoying our time together..sure do miss the old girl..she was 'one of a kind' not a day goes by that she's not in my thoughts..had a sense of humour about her... so it does make one feel good..glad you enjoyed..
Marrilynne, the sunshine warmed the entire house yesterday, just wasn't pleasant if you ventured outside..frigit temps..not sure what the weather will bring today but know on the morning newscast it is warning communities such as Washago (mom has her cottage) and Coldwater (just down the road) that flooding will be an issue over the next few days if we get the higher temps and rain they are calling for...not looking forward to swimming pool in my basement either and nothing much one can do..ground is frozen so can't even trench..have to leave my anxieties with Mother Nature ..
Growin, isn't that unusual to have snow there? Thank you for the info on the mites..will be more cautious as to the plants I bring in ..white star is so pretty..
Better get to painting that birdfeeder..I'm an early morning riser but lordy I'm not far from being in bed by 8pm..lol so better get the most out of my day..
Do enjoy yours and hope it's a sunny day for you to enjoy..
Woke up to this this morning!
Thanks Betty, It took me about 4 or 5hrs to do it. If I would have a shed where all the tools are setup, I would probably venture in doing woodcraft, It's a lot of work, to set it up for a small project.
Oh fancyvan, what a nice yard. The snow had interest to it also. That's gonna melt fast.
Marilynne, your in zone 3 and your seeing green shoots, congrats
Another full day of sun today, very nice out.
Somebody sent me this link from Quebec yesterday. Wowwie, they got way more then me. The snow hide the houses, cars are hidden under snow. People can walk up to their roofs. unbeleivable. http://super-ligue.com/tempete.htm
fancyvan - looks pretty.
Bettypause - snow is rare here at this time of year. Actually it was hail - lots and lots of it. It only hailed in my area. If you go a few blocks north, east, west or south, there is little or no hail. It must have hailed for atleast an hour. I swear it was the new 61 storey Shangri-la tower that caught a bad cloud and kept it here. It was about 4-6" of hail and turned into a big sludge - sorta like pea soup or a bellini cocktail. I visited some Magnolias today and they all seem to have marked blooms from the cold yesterday.
my garden
Ughhh! That wasn't very nice of Mother Nature, now was it? Sure is a pretty picture though :-)
Here it's supposed to go up to 10C today with rain, 14C tomorrow with rain, then back down to single (but still plus) digits for the rest of the week with more rain for Friday. Lows are supposed to dip only into the single negatives (-1 to -6) during the night hours.
Woo hoo! Looks like spring might finally be making some headway here.
LOL, not from my back yard last night..photo posted..
Growin, will the hail have damaged much of your plant life?? not nice and only in your area? wouldn't you know it...
Very much like like Ginnylynn's forcast for what is to come this week..foggy on our way in, infact it took us an additional 20 minutes driving (or should I say parked - lost in the fog)
When walking Sailor early this morning the ditch was full of water..must call the municipality because it was also full of leaves partially blocking the flow...
Hi Everyone... I thought we had a lot of snow in Montreal, but I see Georgian Bay has 10 fold...Its raining today, and getting milder, with a high of 9C for Tuesday with more rain, so that will help to get rid of the horrible white stuff, which will fjnally show us some signs of spring. I still have over 4 ft of snow in my front yard. Where are my tulips...
Hi All........................... just popped in from the UK to see whats happening in Canada!!
Hello Mr. Crocosmia..we're just fine, all hoping for sunny weather, beautiful gardens as promised by Mother Nature...lol
Rained most of the evening last night, during the night and this morning..not very confident about entering my home tonight..am sure with the rapid melt down and 14+ temps I'll have a swimming pool in my back yard..
Ghislain. bonjour...do wish you luck with the melting process..yes, I am the same, large yard with over 4' of snow, do know what's to come..let's hope any damage is minimal..hardest part is working each and every day because a lot of water can seep within a house during a 10 hr. period..
Our snow is blessedly MELTING away .. but (always that 'BUT') the north wind is NOT nice to be out in despite the bright sunshine .
The Grossbeaks are back and I am on ROBIN watch :-)
~M~
Haven't seen a robin, now SIL was telling me this morning they stay here all winter...if they do, they're great at hiding because I've not seem one..
Yes, the trees here are bending as the wind increases..but on a good note, doesn't the wind help dry up ground water??? 10 more minutes and homeward bound..takes about 1 1/2 hrs. to get home, let's hope it's a leisurely evening, no flooding in the basement..crossing my fingers/toes/knees and whatever else I can cross..lol
Ghislain, Quelle Hivers Dure!!!! Can't wait for it to be over and see all my flowers.
Yes wishing the flooding will be minimal here too,
Our neighbor had it rough last year. They had just finish doing renovation in their basement, the summer before, They had new floating floors and drywalls, had to redo everything including digging around the house to fix the foundation and bulldozing . Felt really bad for them. Sure hope all the work they did holds well this year.
Betty, you should build trenches that leads to your pond, this way you won't have to fill your pond, the melting snow will take care of it. ;)
Hi MR_Crocosmia, what type of weather are you experiencing?
No Robins here either, but grackles arrived in big numbers.
Evening everyone, left home at 4:45pm, winds were just a howling, newscast said they reached 85 kl. more than anticipated..when I left for the city this morning at the same location it was 52, did the high of 59 today (?) and when I got to same location it was 28, shortly after that, snow/snow/snow so that was the bad news but the good news - no inside flooding..had to turn my heat up and the 2 fireplaces..goodness it was chilly..one just doesn't know how to dress, what to prepare for...
Nice to hear the french..haven't spoken it since DH and grandmother passed...so thank you
our weather at the moment is pretty good................... a little windy but not bad!!
We had the snow etc for a week or so and that was it................ now its in the 50's!!
This week we had a bit of a break and the sun showed up. Mabelline, my truck, and I went for a drive today to Mt. Vernon, Washington to take a look at the bulb fields. The daffodils are out but I noticed damage from the hail on most things. I'm looking forward to seeing the Tulips in the next few weeks.
