Wind your seedling are looking good! I bet they liked that sunshine!
I'm looking for my lupine seeds still, I took them out of the bag the other day to soak and nick and haven't seen them since LOL They have got to be around here somewhere! sigh...
Join Us! Seed Swap Seed Starting & Conversation #10
Yes Lebug it is almost impossible to avoid the pvc and vinyl! It's pretty sad that the gov. can't step in and phase out all the products that are made from it. In the documentary they talk about how the manufacturing companies are so rich that they can pretty much buy everyone off.
Meredith we are just in the wrong country, if we were in another country and had this problem then the United States would step in and replace it!
Wind It looks like you have your fanflower in a "coir" lined basket. Is that correct? I think I will borrow that idea because each time I have tried that flower it has succumbed to too much moisture. I will have to get them at the nursery as I have not grown any from seed but if they work this year that is another for my want list.
Thanks for your picture it is lovely
Very true Lebug!
Oh, those little seedlings look great! And don't you just love the green plastic "perma-nest" trays... no more cheapo black plastic trays for me that hold up for a season or two before getting holes or cracks! (The old ones with holes are good to hold winter sowing containers, though!)
The last black trays I got a couple of years ago from one of my nurseries had holes in them so I took them back (just pin holes but enough for the water to leak out) and they haven't sold them since lol I'll probably end up getting some of those perma trays for next year, I take the glue gun and patch my old ones, yes I'm cheap lol I put them thru hell though I use them outside for watering my small pots and 6 packs so they are in the sun a lot and get a lot of abuse.
Wooohooooo!!! I'm finally getting all of those empty seed bags and envelopes, snow seeds cleaned off of my dresser, I forgot what it looked like, still haven't found my lupine seeds though LOL Now if I could just get two more rooms cleaned that have trays,a whole bag of dirt, 5 gal. buckets of dirt, xtra trays and seed trays, pots and jugs LOL
Top many threads going. For whoever had that Mexican Flame Vine. It is considered a shrub and it dispurses its seeds in the wind and can germinate off another host tree, I was readign somewhere, which makes me think that you would just want to lay it on top of the soil and not cover it maybe. Since it considered a shrub too, it probably has a lot longer germination time. Maybe just lay it on some soil and forget about it and maybe it wil germinate.
Wind. What a pretty basket. Thanks for the pic. I gonna have to get my plants some space, cuz right now they all crammed together in a flat. Do you happen to recall if you have one or two plants in that basket? Aren't new plants lots of fun. : ) Can't wait to see this baby really get to blooming. Gonna look awesome.
Suzy,, have i got this right, when the news comes on tonight I look at the dewpoint, ( hopefully they show one : ( ) If the dewpoint a whole lot lower than the temp, then I won't have frost? Any idea about how much lower?
Starlight, Are we all talking about the same Mexican Flame vine? This is what my MFV looks like, and it doesn't look like a shrub, or tree to me. It grow on a trellis or an arbor.
~Lucy
I am reading, just maybe not commenting enough...
Star. Going by this information for tonight, your coldest temps wil be between 5-8 am and you won't be freezing at all, and no frost
Suzy
6am Partly Cloudy
37°F forecasted temperature
10%
30°F Dew POint 76% From NW 5 mph
http://www.weather.com/weather/hourbyhour/36875?begHour=3&begDay=105
7am Partly Cloudy
38°F forecasted temperature
10%
30°F Dew POint 73% From NW 6 mph
Thanks Suzy. Never seen that site before. It gonan be a close one, cuz while that the weather for the area, I down in a valley and so my temps are low.
Blue Glancer.... Yep sure think so, go to google and type in propagation of Mexican Flame vine seed. There a university site forget which one. it considered a woody shrub , even though it grows as a vine. Boy that sure does look pretty. : )
Learn something new, everyday. : )
~Lucy
Kath, I love that picture! I just wish mine would be hardy here.
Man! You don't think you have many plants outside until you go to carry them in! I didn't bring everything in I left the violets and petunias out there in the little greenhouses to fend for them selves it's 50 in there right now so I think those will be alright. I planted some pinchings of the petunias that did alright last night at 30 degrees but I took some brush and covered about four of those.
Suzy, I got either a purple or a lavender osteospermum! it looks dark now but I'm sure it will lighten up as it begins to bloom I really want a real dark one but don't think that is going to happen, just as long as I get about four lavender out of them, that may be asking too much out of ten seeds lol
I am still lurking, just not a lot ot reprt-I do have my Salvia Evansiana germinating finally in a bread pan on the heat vent!!! I will have to get some pics. I do have a ??
ARE THE CODY WHOSITS SUPPOSED TO DIE OFF??? Mine are and that make me worried...:(
yes, the cotyledons die off after their job of feeding the tiny starter seedlings is done. not to worry. :-)
Phew, thanks!!
Lea, I left all mine outside...I have no place to put them if I bring them in anyhow....fingers crossed!
That Mexican Flame Vine thing is really cool!
Suzy
I sat mine on an old toy box that fit three trays and put the rest of them on the floor in an extra bedroom, they won't go out until Tuesday with no light :( I've done this before and the outcome wasn't that bad though. After this freeze I'm putting my tomatoes out that are fighting the lights bigtime lol I have a lot that will stay in but about a half a shelf really needs space! I'll just have to box them up in their little pots if it gets cold again or bring them in, the poor babies are bending over so much against the lights I have no choice, one of these years I will learn when to plant my tomatoes LOL
Ah, well, Mr. Clean would not like them just perched around the house, I'm afraid. ROTFLMAO! "wouldn't like" is a euphamism for "would KILL Me if...!"
Suzy
We have the strangest of weathers over here! We live at the coast and a band of only 5 km. is dry and sunny while it rains in the rest of the country. I haven't had any rain for ten days now and my sandy soil is getting bone dry. DH already thinks I spend too much time weeding, planting, sowing and now watering has been added too!
He dragged me from the gardens yesterday to go and visit my in-laws. Not my favourite kind of outing but to apease me he took me to the bulb fields too, which were splendid: http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb270/AnkeFreese/Slideshows/bollenvelden.swf . Don't you think so too?
We still have some frost at night, which is most inconvenient as I had to move a lot of babies out of the greenhouse and into the open as I'm preparing for the last round of indoor sowing: pumpkins, cukes, squash, melons, etc. First seedlings have been planted outside too. They're in the brassica family so need protection from the pigeons. I built a "netting tunnel" to protect them and thought to make things easier for myself to cover the ground in special foil and to plant the seedlings through it. Wasn't very easy and you should have seen me laying on my tummy in the sand to plant those poor babies. I'm afraid I killed the turnips, though.....
HI all-Boy have I had a hard time keeping up when I check in! Sooo many babies here and I am horrible at taking pics. Here is the other pic I posted that wind said she liked-It is an are that has been overgrown a bit with cutleaf rudbeckia, oregano, liliy and siberian iris. At the end of last season I ripped out half of the CR, and a lot of the oregano. I put in some plume poppy on the left side in front of the windows. This year I will divide the iris and take out and move most of the lily. We have a lot of places they can be moved to. It's just to overrun and texturally uninteresting to me.
That's why you don't grow perennials, Suzy! lol! http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=4789847 (the actual pic is on my other PC in my bedroom and hubby is still asleep)
Oh yeah Lea what was it from the second pic that you had trouble with? Everything was perennial in that pic. Yes it was knautia macedonica-I love the flower too!
Suzy-none of it was from seed.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/fp.php?pid=4800647
Flower - that is a pretty picture! The border looks great and your house is beautiful too! I love all your windows. :)
Flower-love the pics and how did you get your Knautia to grow so tall-mine is only about 12-14"...I love your house too-all those windows are winderful (but I am sure a pain to clean!!) The 2nd pic is my fave!!
Kath, I didn’t have trouble with anything in your picture I just loved your picture, I have a few plants of the knautia macedonica ~ red and can’t wait until their third year which will be next year I guess, I had them in pots for the first year but that doesn’t count when you get them in the ground I guess lol I just want them to be full grown cause they are suppose to be bigger I wanted to grow some more for this year and just too many other seeds that I haven’t grown!
Fairy, how old is your macedonica? It should get taller in time….sigh
Star, I put some M. flame vine seeds in a seed tray we’ll see how it goes, thanks!
Aw Suzy, tell Mr. Clean they would only be in the house for a couple of days! Even dad doesn’t mind that, which I can’t believe! He’s so picky! He has nothing to do but sit around and criticize what I do!
My coral vine is shooting up from the dirt that I found outside from last year LOL Looks like I’m going to have me a coral vine :) I think I’ll grow it on the wisteria. Anybody see anything wrong with that?
Tuink, I’d love to see the bulb fields but I can’t get the link to open, for some reason I have trouble with your links, no one else does :( Liked your little garden, it’s soo much trouble to try and keep the critters out isn’t it? LOL
Well I’m off to get to some transplanting, let me ask you all something, I put some morning glory seeds after they sprouted in some seed trays, I filled them all the way to the top will this be enough room U think for the roots if I transplant them as they come up? I just hate putting them all in pots until they germinate takes so many pots, I’m growing quite a few of them and extras for the nursery I’m giving plants to. I have 5 moon vine seeds germinating! Of course they will go ahead and go into pots!
Oh Lebug I'm so glad you mentioned Tuinks link, I meant to go back and check it and forgot. Thanks for reminding me lol :)
OMG that is amazing! I would love to see those from up in Tuinks Jet! lol :)
Can anyone recommend the temps they look for to start hardening off? I got my patio growrack yesterday, and it's all set up and ready to go. Tomorrow and the rest of the week look good, but the only problem I see is that it doesn't get to the high until close to the time I got to go off and work. So at first it will be fine if I put them out from noon til 1pm, but after that, when they need more time out I won't get back to check them or bring in until 4:30. What would you do? I think that's why I always end up hardening off much later than I should. I wait until it's nice n warm in the late morning.
Meredith, I have to read all the posts since I last posted, but the sun is your enemy, as much as the temperatures.
What temps have they been growing at?
Do you have a heat mat?
How many hours of light do they get a day?
I think you are looking at putting them outside, when it's in (at least) the 40s and sunny for an hour. Then two, then three, etc. It seems impossible that your little babies could last out in the cold, but they do! (Naturally I am not talking about heat loving tropicals< Cannas, Dahlias, etc., just the perennials and hardy annuals, but actually, even the regular annuals like marigolds can start going out.)
Suzy
Meredith, with your zone I would think you would have plenty of time to harden off yet, if you do now there will probably be temps. there that will force you to bring them in the house later for a week or so, so I wouldn't jump the gun yet, of course you are probably like us and just have too many plants in the house and want them outside so by all means go ahead and take them outside just make sure the sun isn't too warm for them to be in right now while you are away from your babies :) I'm in zone 6 and I'm taking some tomatoes outside at the end of the week but even here I'm sure I'll have to bring them in a few days before it gets warm and stays warm, I did leave my violets and some other plants out there for our cold temps this week but I'm not sure how they are going to do I'm really taking a chance with them.
Yeah, it's weird, isn't it, pam,,,,we've had the grayest spring I can remember in a long, long time!
I probably told this story already, but I get a Christmas card, very traditional for a bulb family in Holland every year.... Merry Christmas, with a pic of the bulbs fields. There is a son, though, handsome as a movie star, who is about 28 and loads of fun. He sends out the same Christmas card to the "younger" people (I say that because I get one, LOL!) showing the same exact field, with the same exact flowers, only he is showing the field after the cutter that CUTS ALL THE HEADS OFF THE TUPLIPS INTHE FIELD WHILE THEY ARE IN FULL BLOOM has gone half way through. It is the funniest thing! Sad. Funny, Funny-Sad. :))
I'll try to find it and scan it (if I kept it)
Suzy
My seedlings have been growing in my garage, where it stayed in the high 40's low 50's most of the late winter and up until the last couple weeks. I am going to guess it gets mid 60's to low 70's when the sun is strong and it's a decent temp outside. But probably drops back down to 40's or 50's at night. They get lights for 13 hours. No heat mat. I germinate them in the house, then I move seedlings out in my cabinet which stays much warmer, (than the rest of the garage) until they get true leaves, then I switch them to the other rack. Once they get 2 or 3 sets of leaves I really don't mind if they slow down, because I don't want to have to transplant everything. ;) I went out today and it's supposed to be like 47F now and it seems too cold for them to me? But tomorrow supposed to be high 50's and gradually working up to high 60's over the week. I know this may not really happen but hypothetically if it did that should be good weather to harden off right? I know my safe date is not until memorial day, but we very rarely see damaging frosts that perennials can't handle by the end of April. I think the latest ever was June 9th but that was 60 years ago. I'm usually planting stuff in early may. Though I wouldn't take a chance with anything tender. Mostly I'm just thinking of the perennials I've started, that are getting good size to them. I think my zone is more like a 6 with a very rare blast of z5 cold once in a great while. I live a ten minute ride from where the hardiness zone map considers it to change over to z6 and all the stores around here sell a fare amount of z6 plants. I can't say I have a lot that have survived because I have not been at it long enough. I do have quite a few z6ers to look for this spring. Sorry so long an explanation but I figure it would help with advice. :)
I have been keeping my geraniuims outside in a mini greenhouse - so far so good. Also my zinnias and my cosmos that I started have survived so far - the cosmos are really coming along, the the zinnias haven't really taken off yet.
Here is something to cheer you up pam, I've finished sowing the rest of the hibiscus seeds that you sent me last year lol I've been transplanting the ones that have come up so far, thank you very much!!
Suzy, don't you be flirting now you know you are married LOL He sure sounds worth it though! When did you say you were going to Holland? LOL
Meredith if you are closer to z6 weather by all means try and harden those plants off, I'm not really hardening mine off yet I just need them to be outside lol But when it is nice the end of the week I'll probably try and harden some off, hoping the weather will stay nice. After last year I'm a little gun shy so you have to forgive me for being too leary of trying right now :) Suzy is a lot bravier than me but then she has a lot more plants that are getting in her way than me lol
I'm just now planting my zinnias tonite after dinner and my portulata (sp) they slipped my mind while I was getting other seeds ready to plant :) I have some other seeds I'm planting tonite but can't remember at the moment. Ive been watching my morning glories all day to see if anymore sprout to be planted, I feel like an over pertective mother lol Right now I need to do some holes for cups to get ready for 16 of my whooper peppers, thank you grampapa! Nothing else has come up yet that you sent but I'm sure anyday now :)
Someone tell me about this climbing spinach please, how do I plant it and then what do I do with it, make it a trellis?
Lebug, you gave me the idea to get some stuff outside so I can make more room inside. Right now I am not out of room but I think I will be soon. So I thought start getting the stuff used to outside now so when I have no room left they will be ready. :)
The rack I got has wheels on bottom so I thought it will be easy to roll it in the garage at night until the nightime temps are warmer. Earlier there was talk about this, wasn't it high 40's to be able to leave them out at night? (not tenders)
The whole hardening off process always baffles me. I get the gradually increasing their exposure to outdoors and sun and all but then I wonder How can I do that at night? Picture me getting up in the middle of the night to tend my seedlings LOL. I'll have to set my alarm clock for every hour to check the night temps. (please tell me this is not what I am really supposed to do :o ) Last year I heard some hard rain start up and I threw my robe on to go save them! My DH thought I was losing my mind lol!
Yes, Meredith, it's time to get the hardy annual and perennial babies out in the cold cruel world, a little at a time. Start with an hour when the temps are in the 40s, and work your way up a few hours at a time, to totally outside with a decent overnight temp in the 40s.
They love RAIN as opposed to watering, and they will only take off once they are planted in the ground. (Or so it seems to me; I know greenhouse growers would argue that point, but for the rest of us schlumps, I think the soil is better for them.)
If you start now, by the end of April they will be hardened off, and more importantly, yo u will have more room in your garage for more tender things.
Suzy
Edited to add: We cross posted, but you can get the hourly forecasted temperatures from www.weather.com. Not the high 40s, just the 40s.
This message was edited Apr 14, 2008 5:27 PM
Man... it been rainign on and off here all day and we had a really good rain shower and been waitign til later this evening to go out and cover plants and wonder now if i even need too since it just hailed all over them. : ( I don't even want to go out and look at what damge been done. Wil lookwhen it dark that ay maybe what i won't see won't upset me.
Just prayign it keeps stayign windy and no freezing temps tonight.
LOL Meredith, just put those babies back in the garage so you don't have to worry about them at night lol When it gets a little warmer you can leave them out over night, I've been thru this too and it's not worth the worry once they are hardened off they will be alright at night and when they do get hardened off make sure they can go thru a rain or two, hard ones :) I always worried about my seedlings the most with the rains but they just make them stronger rain is the best med. for them! I'm a rain believer though I have rushed out just to put them in the rain! My house plants too!
Star, how big was our hail? they always threaten us with galf ball size hail but, knock on wood, we never get it in our area thank goodness, I've been afraid to look at mine before too so I feel your pain, you may be surprised they may not be as bad as you think, how are your plants that you can see by the house? Good Luck girl I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!
Star I am praying for you babies, but for the ones you are sneding me next week too!!:(
Morning all! Due to a lack of room, I've started hardening off my babies some weeks ago. First from the very hot attic to the much cooler guestroom, that to a little greenhouse outside and now the first ones have been banned to the big, scarry outside world.
Hardening off for me is a question of looking and feeling. Seedlings that have grown quite big, look healthy and are supposed to be (half)hardy go out first. I always check if they're OK, especially when it gets cold at night. Plants that don't like the cold will show this. Their leaves turn yellow and become a bit "papery". That's a sure sign they'll have to move back in again until it gets warmer. But it won't kill them! It might also happen that leaves turn a darker, reddish colour. This means they're adapting and have a hard time but you can leave them outside.
I even moved some tomatoplants outside about three weeks ago, and they thrive even though they had a little frost!