What can I germinate now?

I do both just to make sure I'll get some to sprout. When I cover lightly I don't worry about whether or not they get light until they germinate. If I leave them on top of the soil then I put something over the top to block any light from getting to them. I just seem to have trouble with getting anything more than about 30% germ. with them.

Thanks. I put just one seed per pot so maybe I'll go back and put in another seed.

I put mine on top and lightly covered with ground sphagnum moss (which helps prevent fungus/
damping off). Then I put the trays on the floor of my greenhouse under the benches so its relatively
dark and cool. I got the best germination ever this way this year. It looks like every seed germinated
and I'll have some pricking out to do soon. Ahhhh... I like having stuff like that to keep me busy
in the early months.

Tam

Tammy, where do you get the ground sphagnum moss?? I must try this!

I used to buy such stuff at a chain called Franks that has since gone out of business.
I have a stash and haven't looked for a while. I don't see a supplier with a quick google
search. I'll have to see if I have a bag to get a brand for you. You should check your
local nurseries - the better ones may have it on hand.

Tam

Will do, thanks. (I remember Franks! That was such a fun place.)

I like the ground sphagnum moss idea. I think I'll call around to my local nurseries to see if I can get some. Do you leave the seed on top of the soil, soak the moss then place on top of the seed? Also do you have to spritz the moss at all during the germination process? I cover my trays w/ plastic wrap after planting; is this neccessary w/ the moss? sorry about all the questions. :-)

I put the seeds that need light on top and just lightly cover with the ground sphagnum moss.
(its very light - not stringy). I do not soak it. I generally water from the bottem w/o cover when
the trays are in teh greenhouse but when I use lights, I do cover. I think covering really
does help in germination but you do have to be careful when uncovering. I do a little mini-hardening
off there too. Set the lids askew so there is some fresh air on the newly germinated seedlings
for a few days and then remove totally. Rather than pulling off totally at once.

Great, thanks!

ummmm . . . . well, that's probably where I went wrong . . . . I pulled the plastic covers off all at once. . . . well, still lots of time to start again!

I just spent a lovely few hours transplanting pansy seedlings from multiple per cell
so that each cell in the pack had just one. While it does give me more plants, the
real reason I fuss on stuff like this is to give me a reason to play in the dirt without
starting more seeds too soon. I did start aubretia and foxglove today as well.

I looked up the sphagnum moss - its "Milled" not ground. So when I googled this
I found a source. Google "milled sphagnum moss" and you'll find other sources too.

http://wardsci.com/product.asp?pn=IG0013369&sid=google&cm_mmc=google-_-cpc-_-ward-_-milledsphagnummoss&gclid=CM2hmqatvJgCFQw9GgodoEbzZw&bhcd2=1233526326

I thought the birth of Penelope the Pirate armeria maritima was an omen so I decided to seed a 'few more' things today

thalictium aquilegifuleum (meadow rue)
seseli gummferum (moon carrot)
penstemon NOID
penstemon strictus
penstemon digitalis 'Husker's Red)
stokesia laevis (Stokes Aster)
heuchera 'Purple Palace'
lychns awkwrightii
geranium 'Silver Shadow
polemonium 'Apricot Delight'
amsonia tabernaemontana (blue dogbane)
ruta odorata 'rue'
white scabosia (probably big mistake because it will flop and I will hate it)
geranium 'ballerina' (crap shoot because I think its seed is sterile)
crocosmia 'Ember Glow'
anchusa leptophylla 'Blue Shower'
lathyrus nervosus
saponaria ocymoides
salvia lyrata 'Purple Volcano'
lychnis cahlcedonica 'Dusky Salmon'
adenophora amethyst (lady bells)
adenophora bulleyana
sedum 'Turkish Delight'
anthemis sancti johannis
coreopsis tinctoria 'Mahogany Midge'
eryngium leavenworthii (sea holly)
delphinium 'Blue Butterfly'
delphinium NOID light blue
delphinium Pacific Giant tri-colour (from cool mutant I had this summer)
NOID yellow aquigela

ps I have no idea why I keep seeding penstemon cuz they hate me.

That's a wonderful collection! Where do you get your seeds?

Have you grown the adenophora amethyst before? I started it from
seed a number of years ago - I think they were from Thompson Morgan.
They were very weedy - lovely when in bloom but ugly after and were definitely
imperialists, out for world domination. I've been pulling them ever since.
(Maybe 6yrs or so)

Do the Penstemon seeds hate you or the plants too? How do you germinate
them? I checked my notes and it looks like different species have different
requirements. They need light to germinate. Some like to be prechilled.

Tam

Tammy I get my seeds from catalogues, friends and collecting myself. This is my first try with the adenopora. I hope it is better behaved in my zone. Thanks for the info and I will watch it now. I have had no luck with penstemon germinating so far. I use the Tom Clothier guide. All 3 of the ones I'm trying this year were collected by friends and some of the seed is a few years old. I shall just wait and see.

You might try splitting them into two batches - one for the warm start and the other
in the cold for 6wks.

Exactamondo. Some in the unheated greenhouse and some in the warm indoor growop.

dahlianut - do you use the Journal to track your babies, or a separate spreadsheet? I'm curious as to how many folk maintain their own spreadsheet vs. (or in addition to) the DG Journal. I admit to both :-)

I use a notebook. I like this method because I can carry it with me to the greenhouse and make entrys as I look at everything. Also works for making notes as I walk around the garden trying to figure out where in hoot I'm going to put everything LOL.

I admit I'm a tad anal when it comes to tracking my seeds. When things start germinating fast and furious I don't keep up as well, but here's a page from this year's spread sheet to show at least how I start.

you are so funny I dont worry about any of that I just fill the flat with soil no pots lol sow the seed as per directions and wait when it comes up it comes up when its big enough I move it to pots I always plant way more than I want so I dont watch for germination rate or anything dont bother with notes or any of that either lol I just check on clautier and see what should be planted and by the end of that week go and look at my seeds to see if I have any of those kinds and plant them hahahh it mostly all do well every year

Scicciarell YOU are so funny. LOL. Some of us need our flowers to bloom by a certain date so it's important to keep track of that stuff. Many of us are short on space so we need to keep track of how long it takes the seeds to germinate so we know when to start over if something's not working. And the images are VERY important to many of us as we have no room in our lives for NOIDs when we're planning our gardens. LOL!

The casual approach can be fun, but I'm trying to market this year so I need to be a bit more organized.
;-)

sorry did not know you are marketing your product I made an ass of myself again I asumed that it was for a home garden Im sorry please forgive my big mouth oops typing

Oh no - everyone does it different and that's what intrigues me - there are as many ways as there are folks, i should think. Last year I noted mine in my Journal and spreadsheet for when they were planted and sprouted, but didn't track anything further than that. Now I find that I really should have noted the blooming time, as I'm wanting to take some to the local Farmer's Market (the pickin's were mighty slim there last year). And I had forgotten how nifty Clothier's site is. I'm finding the extra information that Kelly's got in her spreadsheet is as handy as the info on Clothier's site. (I'm a big one for not paying attention to planting depth.....)

what I do works for me but if I was doing for selling later in the spring I would be more carefull to get the most germination so I would make the most money for the space I would be using so I do understand that it is very important for someone making money from there plants to keep records since with my kids I end up knowing what I start but I may loose track of what it is for a while till the bloom or not lol since they think it is fun to take the tags of the flats lol

LOL! So you have "help"!! I have the same sort of help with weeding outside - i've found it extremely helpful to put permanent labels on the babies when they get out to the cottage garden as my SO doesn't really know the difference between the hollyhocks and a weed, and i certainly don't want her to stop enjoying weeding!! When I transplant seedlings into larger containers I use the plastic drinking cups, and just write on the sides with a Sharpie. But until they get into those I'm glad no one else can get to them. (We don't have cats anymore either.....)

my girls started playing the pull the tags on my flats since they turned like two and now at 9 and 10 know better but do it as a laugh so I dont worry about it since I start everything on time so if its an annual it is ready to start blooming when it goes out at the end of may and if it a perennial I can tell what it is by that time since I keep all the packages

I totally luv reading all the different methods everyone use's to track their babys. "Whatever works for you" is my motto ^_^

No harm no foul scicciarella. Like the others said, whatever works for you is the best way.
;-)

well today I finally got around to plant the heuchera and astilbe it says it will take anywhere from two weeks to 2 months to come up lol I like the quick ones better but I find that perennials take so long to germinate. patience is a virtue hahahah

I actually had anemone nemorsa seeds germinate after a full year! I put them in a tray
in my barn for the winter. I had almost given up on them but brought the tray into my
greenhouse after a year. It was fascinating that all the seeds germinated w/in a few days
of each other.

I love starting plants from seed! Its so exciting... its sllllllooooooooowwwwwwww but exciting.

Tam

a YEAR?!?!? OK, patience now must become one of my virtues.....

I have found that most perennials need a cold period some companies do it before sale but most dont unless it is marked so I have learned that it is better to put my seeds in the garage for a couple of weeks before I plant them
that is why hers didnt come up till the next year they needed to be cold in order to germinate

I bought a second refridgerator to cold cycle my seeds. Those anemone were unusual in that
they needed such a long time. Most its just 6wks or 3mo in the cold or maybe a couple cycles
of warm cold.

so was it worth the effort?????

I always think its worth it when I see them bloom and they I start to calculate how much the seed cost and then how much each plant cost at the retailer then I smile and tell myself for sure it is all worth the effort and the mess

We have a second fridge in the basement as well. I have rose seeds potted and lavander potted in their at the moment. I've done the lavendar before in the fridge(6 weeks) and done well with the germination but this is the first time for the roses. Fingers crossed.

I thought that rose seeds are not true to the parents that they are usually like the wild ancester of the plant is that right or wrong I have never tried growing them

I really have no idea! I was perusing the Herb forum and saw that some people harvested the seeds from the rose hips. So I thought I'd give it a whirl. Here's a website recommended to me: http://www.neilsperry.com/articles/2008/11/19/rose-cuttings.html

most of the roses that I have seen with hips are the climbing ones never thought of growing them so good luck and thanks for teaching me something will look for some this fall and try it next winter

I'll let you know how I make out. One concern that I have is alot of roses are grafted onto rootstock that can handle colder conditions so I'm hoping that these do ok.

they will probably be some kind of wild roses in white or pink but they smell nice and are very hardy

they will not be cultured roses since you are right and they are grafted since they would not survive our climate