Join Us! Seed Swap Seed Starting & Conversation #10

Hey everyone - whew! Y'all are still busy as chicks in a grainyard!

Flower - those petunias were started in those peat pods - with the mesh. And I was picky and actually only put one seed per pod. Had them tucked near each other to cut down on evaporation, but didn't like using the Jiffy (or whatever trays they are) that have a little spot where each pod gets tucked, as they stay far too wet in those. I put a tag in each and every pod, but I know I messed up naming a few of the petunias as the colors are just not right (like one of those lilacs). These are also the plants that when I transplanted them to plastic cups (after taking the mesh off) I added a bit of that myco fungi fertilizer.

I did the same thing with the salvia and hollyhocks that are a good 8" tall now and going outside every time the weather's good enough, as well as the poppies. Two of those Heirloom poppies look like they're about to put up flower spikes, so it's a race between the weather and the blooms now, to see if I can get them in the ground so they can reseed in place.

Can you tell the weather's better - there's a lot of outdoor stuff going on, we're so quiet - LOL!

Seandor - I don't think I'd put the salmon geraniums with purple - it might look just a bit "off". I'd try something in the same tonal area - the lavender may work if it's a pale color. Not at all sure about the Lady in Red...that may work nicely depending on the salmon color.

Oh, the Walgreen pots are like 6" in diamter -- really, really small. I might be able to make it look ok if I plant them all together, though, Not sure :) They'd have to be by the patio (hose & water) and have a lot of moisture crystals in them, though. Maybe I could put 3 petunias around them, then one "something" on the top -- or Nasturtiums...those are supposed ot not need a lot of water. Let's just say I am not throwing the receipt away quite yet :)

I had bright (deeply saturated :) Salmon and Scarlet combination last year and thought it was pretty, and the Church up the street had scarlet and deep purple, and I thought that was pretty too. There is a famous hanging Fuchsia flower with purple and sort of a scarlet red, and it's pretty too.

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/98818/

Or Salmon with Blue...ya got any blue over there?

I love purple and red! :D

I am very excited about a Hibiscus Moy Grande sprout! Yes one has finally sprouted in the cup of soaking water! I had forgotten to change the water for many days, and I was thinking about dumping them and giving up or at least changing the water. When I checked them out there was a sprout! Yay :D
Maybe I should add a little hydrogen peroxide?
I still need help with these Lantana seeds, I tried the thing Tuink told me, and I don't know what I am doing. I tried squishing them and they are too hard to break. Is that a good thing? The dryed up berry was easy to get off, but I wasn't sure if I was supposed to break the hard part open or not. Plus I think some of the hard things had holes - is that okay? I read on Tom Clothiers sight they should germinate in less than 2 weeks at 68F but I've seen other comments on various websites that said they take 40-60 days! (-and need heat-) I am confused please help.

This message was edited Apr 9, 2008 9:59 AM

Suzy - I'm gonna make you drag your B&B salvia chat over here from the older thread :) I don't think mine will come back, it wasn't in a protected area. And I noticed a couple days ago the old stalks had that salvia thing happen to them where the softer inside of the stalk sort of explodes through the husk of the outside. I check it each time I go by, but so far, no little leaves :(

Meredith - wish I could help with lantana - I've had no luck yet either.

I can't help you; mine are the same. The hard thing is supposed to be the seed. Out of alllll the Lantana seed I sowed, only 2 kinds germinated for me. One was a multicolored droopy one I got excellent germination on from 2006 seed; the other is a pale yellow upright I sowed about 20 seeds of and got 2 sprouts. I wanted 3 plants if possible, but it doesn't look good. Thge pale yellow one germinated very quickly, about 4 days. I didn't pay attention to the multicolored one from 2006.

The red one - Miss Huff, a peach one, 2 more multicolored ones haven't done a thing. I 'm guessing sterile hybrid on them all.

Suzy, that is my fav. fuchsia! I buy two every year....but this year I was going to be brave and try something else. I can feel myself needing to get them again though, they are really beautiful. The trouble I have is space, I only have this shady spot for two hanging baskets.

I really love that fuchsia but I've noticed the hummers don't really come to it for some reason so I was thinking of making baskets of dragon wing begonias instead.

You all know what I'm putting in the sunny side baskets this year....our summer showers geraniums :)

I got nothing on any lantanas

Wind, do the hummers there like the Dragonwing Begonia? They didn't touch mine, but I had it close to the house and maybe that's why. I heard it doesn't set seed, so I figured it doesn't have nectar, either. But I may be totally wrong on both counts.

Suzy

Geraniums need to be on the dry side, correct? And they need lots of sun, too, right?

So, I have lavender petunias, and maybe some blue annual salvia, but most of my "blue" flowers require moist soil.

For instance, I have Torenia fournieri (wishbone flower) - but they need patial shade and moisture.

I have "glistening white" Osteospermum - that might look okay with the geraniums.

I don't have a lot of light blue

I was thinking of red salvia and purple petunias. I do have some pale pink petunias ones as well, and "midnight blue" as well as supercascade blue. but those are dark blue - almost purple.


This message was edited Apr 9, 2008 12:28 PM

Seandor, You might consider to let some lathyrus sativus creep between them, they're bluer than blue and might do well as a ground cover!

Those white Osteospermum might fill the bill until the blues can begin to fill in.

Swapped my brassicas and violas out of the big greenhouse and back to the little one - the thermometer was reading something like 80* in there - sheesh! So in went the cannas, salvias, petunias and tansy (I got a tansy bloom!) and the violas and brassicas are now enjoying a breath of fresher air.

Suzy - I've got those cannas from the co-op potted up and some are beginning to sprout - I'm thinking I'll put them outside during the days - is it still too cool for them??

Dryad, Ya got me on the Cannas! All I know is they seem to like a steamy greenhouse. That's where my friend has hers untril it's time to plant out.

Seandor, any of the petunias would be happy with the geranium, but I don't know anyhting about Salvia in terms of wet or dry. It seems they don't like too much water as seedlings, but I'm not sure if that translates to the full blown plant. I think deep Purple cascading petunias, red salvia and the burgundy Geranium would look splendid! But the Geranium/Osteospermum combo with a Lilac petunia in there would be pretty, too.

The combination baskets and pots I've been seeing have directions to use 2 each of 3 plants. They are planted at:
noon-6:00 - Kind 1, 2 plants
2:00 & 8:00 - Kind 2, 2 plants
4:00 & 10:00 - Kind 3, 2 plants
(unless the plants are really, really, small, then they appear to use little dots showing "a bunch".)

You probably already knew that, but I thought it was revolutionary :)) I always thought it was supposed to be a different way, and my containers never looked good.

Suzy

Ok, need for all of ya to gather all the sunshine and warm weather ya got and send it on down here real quick. Got seedlings and veggie seeds and stuff all coming up and around and we just finished five days of rain and now friday night going down to the 30's and by monday night wil be back down with frost and freeze in the 20's again and I live in the south. ( cry, wah, sniff)

Ain't no way I cna bring all these tiny pots inside and have covers for most, but do ya think some tiny 6 packs of veggie seeds might survive if I put some plastic over them or are they stil gonan be to tender. Got peas and cukes and pumpkins and squash?

Flowers I know more about than veggies.

Dryad,... Cannas are tough, if your above 55 degrees put them out. I usually have little 3" pots of seedlings stay out all winter of them. Course I don't have the snow just the cold and frosts. They don't like to be transplante dalot all over the place, so I would reommend puttign them where you want them to be permanently.

Starlight, I am so sorry!!!! That really sucks, especially because you are in the south! That's what we expect up here, and it didn't happen. Hasn't happened? I'm not sure, but the 10 day forecast shows all temps well above the freeze/frost mark.

Peas are supposed ot be pretty hardy.
I don't know for sure, but the pumpkins should be the next hardiest. I would think the frost would be bad , bt a slight freeze would be okay on both of them

Cukes and squash will be your biggest problem. :(

Starlight... any way for you to protect them for the nights? like cardboard boxes ... not sure how sheets/blankets/towels would work, since i don't know what they all look like. maybe a 'tent' of sorts.

I had to do that last year when we had that cold snap, but all my seedlings were still in their WS containers... so they were easy to cover.

Dang! Starlight! Is that cold I see in the forecast coming from you? I have been watching the forecast like a hawk, and now it's changed: Sunday and Monday nights will both be below freezing. :((

It ain't coming from me, thought it was coming from all you northern folks.

tcss.... I can try and build some tents over them, but not sure how fast veggie roots freeze. Plants can go down to 0 and whiel they will stop growing , they will survive, but haven't the foggiest on veggies seedlings still in 6 packs.

usually when the weather liars list a "low" it really doesnt last that long.
Now if they are saying Frost warning... then i'd really worry.

"it's always coldest before the dawn"

then the sun comes up and it starts warming already.
I would think plants that are somehow insulated from that cold would do OK for a few hrs or so.

those 6packs will fit in a box, right? if so, that would be plenty of insulation... or at least i'd think it would be.

Robin, don't you just love that tansy bloom? I haven't even planted mine yet so many seeds that I want to plant and the time is running out LOL

Well I put my Osteospermum outside and have blooms on about four of them not enough to tell what color they are going to be yet though, it's been so nice outside and now it's going to get cold again? I don't want to bring these plants back in LOL There aren't that many though that wouldn't be able to take the cold I don't think...

I know for a fact that the tomatoes don't like it cold I lost a few last year before we had that last freeze :) I don't do veggies other than tomatoes and peppers sorry Star wish I could help you.

My sundown coneflowers are coming up that I planted from seed last year now we will know if they come true from seed, I have one more out there too of white swan :) My fanfare will bloom this year too I hope, I grew it from seed last year, only got one plant out of a bunch of seeds :(

The annual salvias, I had the red ones and they don't seem to need much they never droop but the white ones want water constantly here, wonder why they were so different? The red ones looked to be a lot hardier to me though.

Seandor those 'midnight blue' petunias sound really pretty!

Suzy, how is your back doing and your mom?

Robin, how is your back doing? I haven't ben anle to keep up like I have been lol

Star, it's hard to believe you are having colder weather than we are. that's just not right. if your veggies are still in their 6-packs, I'd vote for the cardboard boxes (the corrugated kind) that Terese mentioned. they are pretty good insulation on their own. you could also line them with newspaper.

I have some big boxes out in the garage I wonder if that would work with my tomato and pepper plants so I wouldn't have to bring them in, of course I need to get them out first lol I'm having troube with my covers on my little greenhouses, some of them are different sizes just about an inch or so but enough to keep from zipping the zipper :( I need new ones soo bad wish big lots would get some more!

Star and Lea - if you have bubble wrap, pull it out and wrap those plants in bubble wrap and put a box over them. That's pretty much all I can think of to protect "in ground" and small things like that for short periods of cold like that. Perhaps some straw or leavse before the bubble wrap to make it easier on the plants?? Of course - heaven ONLY knows what will come out from under that box when you pick it up Star! I swear, you have more critters than a Children's Zoo - do you live in a Preserve or something???

My back is MUCH better - thanks :) Had two ligament strains that caused my sciatica to decide to jump in and join the party. Thanks goodness after we moved I pitched a fit for a new mattress (the old one was, well, OLD.....) and my fit continued until it included a Tempur-pedic. LOVE IT!!!!!! It has made such a difference in my back that it's silly.

OK, the cannas are out in the big greenhouse with the petunias and tansy and salvia - and that's where those puppies are staying. I was all set to do some more seeds tomorrow and my sis called and the vet she works for wants me to do some more computer work - so I'm off to see them tomorrow.

Ansonfan (George) says Hi by the way - he and I have dmailed a bit lately over an order we shared. He's up to his earlobes in seeds and babies - I encouraged him to at least drop by and say hi :)

The backwoods. Not too long after th ebirds left I heard rustling and though tit was lizards on th eporch moving leaves around. I kept hearing it and here when I got up to get coffe I had two more bird sthat flew in the house and was on my coffee table.

Wondered what was goignon and realize d they was digging in my box of cheese nips that I had open on the coffee table. How in the heck they smelled or discovere dthem is beyond me. Shooed them out and threw a few of the nips on the groudn for them.

yep I think I got some bubble wrap in the shed so may do that. that certainly woudl give some extra protection.

I have plenty of bubble wrap a whole trash bag full lol My tomatoes haven't been planted out yet I just want to get them in the greenhouse but I was talking to Pirl (on here) and guess I'll have to wait a while longer, I'm just anxious to get them outside they don't look very good! The basement is so damp! I'm going to start running the heater in there for a while each day and maybe I can at least help the plant room, we've just had too much rain and I don't have the furnace on, haven't had for a few days, sick of those bills, apx. $700 every two months! We don't have city gas it's LP (gas tanks).

I haven't gotten anything in the ground yet it's too wet :(

Morning all!

Weathere is nice and sunny at daytime but a light freeze at night. Babies in the greenhouse are shivering but seem to be OK. DH is taking care of opening and closing of the greenhouse as he's been struck by what we call a tennis-elbow. Hmmm, he's never played tennis in his entire life.....

I'm so stiff of all this weeding and greenhouse building, I feel like an old woman!

Tuink, sounds like you're getting a good workout :)

Suzy, you're probably right on the dragon wing...I just assumed the hummers would like it, never really saw a hummer visit the dragon wings either.

Star it is hard to believe it is so cold your way, good luck there...we are having a heated up day today, supposed to go over 70 so they say.

LeBug let us know if your fanfare from seed comes true when it blooms. I love g.fanfare and will collect seeds from mine to propagate it if it will come true. What is it with hybrids...I guess some do come true and some don't?

Flower-I direct sow my Datura, so I am not waiting on them-I think someone else was...

I LOVE THE KINSMAN COMPANY!!! They have some really neat stuff and the side planters are really not a bad price for the size of them...

I was so excited-I forgot about a var. of Agrostemma I put in the basment to germ @ cool temps, and yesterday when I remembered and looked they were about 3" tall!!!

Now what-bring em upstairs in the sun or leave em in cool temps to grow???

Fairy, they're hardy so you could start hardening them off to prevent them from becoming even more laggy!

Illoquin:

I have seen "recipes" for containers - but never the formula:

"The combination baskets and pots I've been seeing have directions to use 2 each of 3 plants. They are planted at:
noon-6:00 - Kind 1, 2 plants
2:00 & 8:00 - Kind 2, 2 plants
4:00 & 10:00 - Kind 3, 2 plants
(unless the plants are really, really, small, then they appear to use little dots showing "a bunch".)"

At first I didn't understand the times given, then I realized this meant looking down at a container, moving around as though it were a clock face (well, it's early in the morning. . . took me a second to clue in! )

Thansks for sharing the recipe. I remembered I have seeds for mini-morning glories - convul - whatever. Anyway, Ensign Blue might look good with salmon coloured geraniums, now I just have to think of the 3rd plant. Maybe those will be white.

I need another cup of coffee....can't follow the clockwork planting scheme!!!!

I have a 3" pot 'lawn' of weez's rose of heaven that germinated today :)

OOO Suzy-sounds pretty!!! I would love one of those w/ dark purple petunias and sweet potato vine!!!!

Thanks Tuink- I will bring em upstairs and transplant, but I'm not going to start hardening off till the first week of May....I am being extra cautious...

What about the fairy snapdragons - I have four of them. Could those go with geraniums? (Mine FS are still quite small)

Should those trailing petunias be pinched at all? that's my newest conundrum...pinching. I know coleus ... and basil. but I've grown so few flowers from seed. Has Suzy already covered this? I'm really losing track of things.

I'll have to give that planting theme some thought. I've never really planned any planters, just filled hanging baskets with petunias and maybe bought some of that trailing vine stuff to throw in. actually last year I had two of the chimney flues in my herb garden planted with purchased annuals and it looked nice. here it is the day I planted it...ivy-leaved geranium, alyssum, you get the idea, and some of the trailing stuff in the back. It filled in really nice.

Jan I pinched all my petunias this year. My blooms have been delayed because of it, but the plants will be sturdier and fuller because of it.

It is cooold here today. Actually maybe it's not as bad as it seems, but I just did a stint on the picket line and I've not warmed up since I got home. It's supposed to rain today which is probably a good thing since I've neglected anything remotely resembling house work for the last week... ... ....or more. I have a few seedlings to prick out so that will have to give me my gardening fix for the day.

p.s....I like the coral with a deep burgandy ;-)

La, thx. I thought I should pinch petunias. I want to keep them short & sturdy. what about zinnias?