Meredith, we posted at the same time -- yes! The laundry basket works great. But it's tough getting dirt and mud out of the little corners of the squares (on the basket) so you can put dirty/clean clothes in them again. I think I finally gave up and used them a few years and then tossed them out.
S.
Cottage Garden Seed Swap & Chat #11
Happy Birthday one and all! (Except those that were born May-March of course. I'll wish you a happy birthday later.) :-P
Thanks for the birthday wishes La and Suzy!
Suzy glad to see you're back and just had to bring some more plants back home lol What in the world are you going to do with all of them :) Glad you had such a great time! And glad your plants were alright! I've been bringing them in and putting some back in the greenhouses, again tonite then they will be out for a while though I haven't seen the weather for tonite and I will probably miss it this evening dad wants to go out to eat.
I got some jacob cline bee balm from kathy_ann and comfrey she has an ad in the classifieds and they are great plants so if you are in the market go for it, very well packaged too I was really pleased! Price was just right too esp. for the size of the plants :) She has other plants too.
Meredith I think I got two packs of each aster so not sure which ones germinated but I am tickled pink to know that one gets 4' at least :) I'll have them everywhere lol
Some of my labels fell out of the bag on the coneflowers but that was alright at least the colors were together, I just wish they would bloom this year :(
Sorry about the echies ladies-for the next one we will be able to ship in the plug cells like we did w/ everything else this time. There will be more this next time from All that Jazz to After Midnight to Tiki Torch-about 8 or 10 I think...
Suzy-glad you had a good time!! What kind of coleus did you get?? Laast year I just got run of the mill var., but this year I am looking for the more unusual var.-I have 1 that I just love-Merlin's magic!!
Lea-what is blue splash??? I will be hapy with whatever you send me my fairy plant godmother!!LOL
I stuck all my WS stuff under my adoirondack chairs to help them stay moist longer-lets see how that works...I was excited-I was @ HD on Tuesday and found Winky Mixed columbine for $3.33 for a 4" pot-not too bad at all!! There are 2 plants in the pot-1 red and 1 blue:)
welcome back Suzy :)
Fairy, since I talked to you, yesterday I noticed my ws columbines are starting!
Critter, I love your Italian basil, the leaves have a serrated edge to them, very different than my Italian basil.
and yes, I actually have 3 petunias that have ever so slowly increased in size to 1/2" this is why I just buy petunias :0
quick question: was the lilac petunia from the swap a wave?
ooo-I will have to check mine too-realistically I am so impatient that even if they had already germinated I still would have bought a couple just to have blooms this year!!!LOL
OMG-that reminds me-I bought silver wave petunia seeds and forgot about them-HAVE to start them today-oh no-hope I'm not too late:( Maybe I will start a couple and save the rest for next year:( so that way I know they will be on time!!
I told DH about my wally world find and he says that is I want some light and shelvs for Xmas, then I will get them!! He hates getting me stuff like that-one year I asked for a crockpot-a nice one w/ the warming cycle and it was like pulling teeth to convince him it was OK to give something like that if it wason my list-he thinks it is old fashioned to give the little lady house stuff!!LOL
Fairy, I know what you mean about your dh, mine is the same way! I practically had to twist his arm to get me the nice pots and pan set I wanted for christmas one year! I think it's okay to get that stuff if that's what the person really wants, while some woman would be mad because they want something romantic lol.
To be honest-I like romance on a small scale-it's the little things-last year for our ann. he came home w/ a toad lily I had been wanting-had to go to 3 places & spend a few hours looking for something he recognized the name as something I had been talking about-I though that was romantic-it was only like $10, but it was the time and effort he put into it-that meant more to me than if he had brought home dozens of roses...I almost cried..
LOL... My in-laws sent us a lovely bouquet for our 10th anniversary last week. Mom said she had wanted to get roses, but Dad said no, he was sure his son would be bringing me roses that night. DH confessed that he had not, and I excitedly interjected, "He gave me something better -- he bought me a tree!" Mom felt better about that when she found out it was a graceful *flowering* tree (a weeping higan cherry). For my birthday, he ran out to a local nursery and picked up exactly the hanging basket (lipstick plant) I'd been mooning over the previous weekend, even though he though it was kinda weird looking. And while I'm bragging on him, I should mention that for Valentine's Day one year he set up my light shelves, and the next year he added a little water tap down in the basement so I'd have water right by my potting bench. I'd filled my shelves a couple years ago and still had seedling trays (needing to be transplanted)... he didn't even say anything, just went out and got me more lights. He may not be much of a gardener (his words), but he's a great enabler.
Yep, he's a keeper! Sounds like several of us are similarly blessed. :-)
OMG that is romantic! :D I can't imagine my dh going and searching for a specific plant I want! He has finally figured out that he's better off buying me a plant that I can plant in the ground, as opposed to flowers for a vase though! Of course I still love getting some for a vase occasionally, esp. in winter.
I think he was able to remember which one it was just because I showed it to him and he thought it was weird looking, LOL! He is picking up some plant names, though... I've caught him giving fairly knowledgeable-sounding "garden tours!"
Oh too cute! :) Maybe with time my dh will be caught doing the same :)
I think that sometimes they just surprise ya!! I like cut flowers of things I can't grow because of hardiness or things that I don't want to grow-but for the $10 I would rather have something that gives me pleasure year after year!!
Fairy, you'll see what blue splash (violet) is when you get one of them :) Looks like it will be next week though, things aren't getting done around here someone need to boot me in the XXX lol I've just been busy planting more seed trays to go outside plus trying to keep up with life!
Pamsue said she had snow coming! OMG!
For the last couple of nights I've been checking this 'red sheild' hibiscus out thinking something was wrong with it, it looks kind of wilted in the evenings but looks fine in the day, so this hibiscus folds it's leaves in like a shield at night? That is so cool lol I'm guessing that is what it is?
Suzy, I just transplanted a couple more red stars :) And the yellow star is coming up :) How many did you end up with so far? I think I've gotten about four red stars and four firecracker so far and the wild one went crazy there are all kinds of them! I'm glad I lost mine I don't think it came back this year.
Lea-ooo goody a surprise!!!! I LOVE surprises!!
This is so sad. I am jealous of you all...your husbands sound like they really "get it"!!! Meanwhile, Mr. Clean, who grew up with Father Knows Best and Ozzie and Harriet, gets me an enormous bouquet of cut flowers for our Anniversary and again on Valentine's Day. He wouldn't voluntarily walk into a garden center for any reason that I can think of. On the other hand, he would see nothing wrong with a washing machine or crockpot for Christmas. I guess I get the worst of both situations.
Fairy, I got Dipt in Wine, Pink Flamingo, Fishnet Stockings, Plum Parfait, and one more I can't actually identify. It was a green-ish yellow one with yellow splashes and a pink reverse mixed in a tray of Pink Flamingo. There is one more i can't remember.
Lea, I wintersowed the yellow Columbine and sowed the Red Star inside. Only two Red Stars came up, so I plucked them out and then waited a couple weeks for stragglers (none) and transfered that pot outside. I don't know where it is and haven't looked at my outside pots much, but they are staying put because of the weird wather. I hope the seed doesn't rot because I have 3 ungerminated flats outside with 18 pots of different seedlings per flat. That would be a LOT of rotted seed! I have another 2 or 3 WS flats, also with 18 different kinds of seed in them, that did germinate and are in the plastic greenhouse. But I don't really take inventory to see what did and didn't germinate until much later.
Suzy
Suzy
OOO-what does Plum Parfait look like???
DH has started bringing a book along when we go erranding. He doesn't mind dropping by the garden center to help me pick up another bale of potting mix, but if he has a book he's willing to sit for an extra 20 minutes while I "browse." It's fair. I go to Best Buy and to Borders more often than I would on my own. (I like Borders, and I read a lot, but I wouldn't go once or twice a week ordinarily.)
I confess there are a lot of seeds that I just didn't get around to this year. *hangs head* Despite that, I've still filled 5 of my 6 light shelves, and I'm potting up some divisions and winter sown seedlings outside, too... so maybe it's good that I didn't sow everything on my list!
Fairy, Plum Parfait sounds better than it is..no plum, just a dark purple with some brown or gray or some earth-tone color that tones it way down. It has fluted or pie crust edges, though, and I like that.
LOL, Critter! True confessions coming out -- I am waiting for the piggies to all start hanging their heads soon. I made a list of every pack sof seed I sent to every person and if I don't see pics of those flowers, I'll know not to give them so many seeds next year. I'll just put in a slip of paper that says "Dear Piggie, Your eyes are always bigger then your stomach."
Suzy
Aw Piggies, I am just joshing ya! Take all you want....I never know what seed I'll be in the mood to plant 3 months down the road.
Suzy
ROTFLMAO!
Just so you know... I did not participate in that second round piggie swap, because I knew I already had more seeds than I could handle! Not to worry, any seeds that I didn't sow this year will be used next year... and any that I don't think I will sow next year are being put on a "give away" pile. I try to share my extras rather than just hoarding them! :-)
Phew Suzy-if you were serious, then I would ahve to start sneaking around in peoples yards looking for a few things to take pics of that I didn't eget done this year!!! I did sow about 90% of what I got this year and had about 90% germination on the ones I started inside, but only 2 dragon's head for my WS so far...:( I then had some mishaps w/ some I sowed inside, so right now I probably have about 1/2 of what I sowed still going strong!!
I have shared some of my extras, but have a little box in the fridge for next year alreasy!!:)
I want to share that my fireweed from the swap is germinating! I put the seeds with some damp pro mix in a ziplock baggy in the fridge and about a week ago I was going through and opening them to give them air and I noticed some sprouts in the fireweed so I took it out and left it on the counter. There are a bunch of seedlings in there now! I have to go pot them up now. :)
Well, Suzy, LOL, I think you got the lot of us going with that one! But I think that ALL of our eyes are bigger than our stomachs, or we wouldn't have participated in the first place....
I've got so many seedlings that I don't know what to do with and still have some stuff that I wanted to get to and haven't. Guess I'll have to save some for next year now, too. Hmm, think I need an extra refrigerator.
But, talk about enabling! Beginning of the year I didn't own a seed starting tray, little rolling greenhouse, or extra shop lights...I've now got two of the rolling 4-shelf greenhouses (bought on clearance at Lowe's for $17 ea), 5 shop lights, and something like 8 seed trays...I used 3 cells per type of seed, so each side of the trays with the small cells had 12 kinds of plants, for about 100 different things, not counting the herbs & veggies that got larger cells, or the stuff I tried wintersowing in 4" pots. A few things never germinated, (or will show up growing out of my compost pile in a month or so), and a few things died off, and a few things are "what was I thinking to start this??????"
Oh, and I can totally relate on the gift thing. My DH is finally starting to get the hang of gift-giving for me, for the most part. (Emails that say "buy this" and have a link are pretty helpful....) However, I did get surprised with a paper shredder for Xmas a year or two ago. Funny thing is, once he explained it, it was actually a very thoughtful gift-it's one of those countertop ones that can shred the entire envelope so you don't have to waste time dismantling everything to get rid of the "convenience checks". I would love to be surprised with a bunch of flowers once in a while, though. The closest we get is going to the Farmer's Market and I tell him to buy me some flowers that I then pick out....
Wind, meant to respond to your comment about the basil... wait until you taste it! Remember, when those little seedlings have a couple sets of true leaves, it's time to pinch their tops -- and eat them! :-) Sometimes the flavor is more strongly "anise" when the little seedlings are under lights; it seems to balance out once they're in the garden.
LOL @ "buy this" emails. I tried adding bookmarks on DH's computer under the heading "gift ideas for Jill," but so far that has not worked out. I wish he would do something like that -- he is much harder to shop for!
Maybe this has already been covered . . . but what is the secret in getting hardy hibiscus to germinate? I have EIGHT different varieties winter sowed and nada so far.
It may just not be warm enough yet. I sowed some hibiscus and they've just started to pop.
LOL-do we all have the same DH?? I make mine out a list w/ pictures, where to get it, how much it is and any options that come with it(size, color etc...)Since I have been doing that I have been much happier-he still does surprise me, but at least he has the list for ideas and filler....
I've been away since Monday so I missed the birthdays. So Happy Birthday Lea and Grampapa a few days late. I put all my seedlings in the garage window when I left, watered well(alittle too well for some) so I was anxious to get them back out into the air. It was so windy but figured that was better than sitting in a dark old garage. They need lots of sunshine and tlc to grow!!!!
Hey all! I am way to busy!!!! I liked the sweet hubby stories. Mine knows WAY more than me about plants, but he has had his own fine gardening biz for 20 years, so he better! Gotta get sleep!-kath
Seandor, Not sure on the Wsing, but if you just sow them ya gotta soak the seeds for 24 hours -- H2O2 is optional. Lea and Pam Sue are the experts on the Hibiscus.
Fairy, Lol on sneaking around the neighborhood looking for plants to photograph :))
I just got back from Lee Bug's house in southern Indiana. I always thought her name was Lee-uh, but it's Lee. She doesn't look anything like a bug, and she looked exactly opposite of how I imagined her. I thought she would be short with straight blonde hair cut straight in a bob with bangs...with big glasses (sort of out of fashion) -- Maybe I was thinking bug eyes? LOL! She was tall and willowy with fairly long dark brown hair and very stylish glasses...I had to laugh at myself because I get a person's image in my mind, and invariably it is not even close!
Her garden is gigantic....she lives on what appeared to be a dead end street in a white frame house...there were two garages on the right side and behind one of the garages was another space =the perfect place for a potting shed. If you looked about any way, all you see is rolling hills...lots of space. There are a lot of gigantic maple trees dotted around, as well as more ornamental trees including the biggest healthiest white dogwood I have ever seen.
She has about 10 gardens beds, mostly island beds and each has a sort of name for what goes in there, like the butterfly nectar bed. My favorite, and hers too was the outhouse bed...okay ,it was really the woodland bed, but there was the cutest outhouse there, too :) There was one of those square-wired farm fences across the back with a tree growing through it and in front of that was a bunch of stuff, most of which I had heard of but never seen-- lots of worts. Toothwort, spleenwort, motherwort...well, I don't remember, but it seemed like worts and hostas and bigger things that could take shade.
On the inside of the house was the place where she sows her seeds and soaks her seeds.;..everybody probably knows that Lea soaks anything bigger than a snapdragon seed in H2O2 water, so I got to see that set up -- she also has them in a warm spot.
Then down to the basement where she has an entire room fitted with shelving and lights - about 40 fluorescent fixtures on 20 shelves, I'd say, and the whole thing was lined in aluminum foil. The walls of the room and the bottoms of the shelves. It FELT like a greenhouse...hot and muggy and very well lighted. I'm not sure how she got it that warm in a cold basement, but it was very warm in there!
Her seedlings were mostly outside, and they were very large. Like garden center sized. There were only a few pots of small seedlings, and they were mostly in the basement. There were also maga coop plants and Fairies were all nicely planted with their gigantic name tags in place. In another 3 weeks, she can open her own garden center!
I learned that Coleus has a good chance of coming true to seed, which I never knew. Never even thought it was possible.
I'm tired - it was a long drive. Dryad, i'll email you, but I do have some plants from Lea for you.
Suzy
This message was edited May 2, 2008 2:20 AM
Ya know-I surprise myself w/ how I picture people-everyone I met last weekend was pretty much exactly as I had them in my mind except Loretta (Demstratt)-she is a small woman w/ dark hair and while I thought she would have dark hair-I thought she would be taller and a little chunky-which she was not...I pictured Lea about 5'8" average build and a little past shoulder length brown hair-didn't have any glasses in mind...In my mind she is in her late 30's -mid 40's....
You had me LOL w/ all the worts!!! BTW-you all know if you see any neat fairies it is your duty to LMK about them right??? I have been looking for some for my gardens, but haven't really found any that are afordable that scream "TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER"...
Can I just say that finding DG has been a lifesaver for me-I still don't have any friends really and we've been here a year-I work in a small office and most of the people in my neighborhood are the ones that keep to themsleves...now that I met some of the other DGers I am loving it!! I am a very outgoing person and am friendly w/ everyone, so wherever I go I am remembered!!LOL It makes my MIL laugh everytime we go anywhere!!!
Well, I am glad you are part of DG, Fairy! ^_^ What would we do without you?
I guess not have anyone to laugh at for doing stupid things!!:)
LOL yeah everyone seems to be the opposite of what you imagine them to be!
tall and willowy..thats very nice :)) and i wish i was that way too LOL
well sunny days ahead so im pushing forth with full steam..oh boy..what alot to do and with the weeds, i have to redo all my beds and keep up with them once i have them done. What a mess with potted stuff everywhere for the keepers.
what took over were the lemon balm ( egads dont ever plant those) feverfew, malvas, wild garlic, wild blackberries, bindweed, chickweed, ..and later it will be pigweed. i was working with reducing blackberries all winter long with a dent in their population but probably another year before theyre mostly gone.
pam sue
Fairy, you're a lot of fun to have around- As an introvert, I'd be hard-pressed to keep up with you in person, I think!
Pam, my Ipomoea coccinea finally sprouted-yay! Guess it's just like calling tech support. The second you ask for help, it fixes itself......And, my deepest condolences on the Lemon Balm. It's taken me 3 years to get rid of most of it, and I'm sure I'll never be without it again. Sounds like decent progress on the blackberries. I guess a late spring has a few pluses. :)
Susy-that's when it gets really fun!! I love introverted peeps-that is when I bring the inner fairy out and all He double hockey sticks breaks loose!!! Trust me my litle bell-we would have a good ole time!! PS-I am so not forgetting about my little dolled up fairy for my Bday-it is in Oct.-coming up on ya!!LOL;)
Seandor.. Them Hibiscus have got to have heat. Lots of lovely heat or they ain't gonan po for ya. They also sprout unevenly and can take months. Give em time.