What have you wintersowed so far #5

OK does this sound right to any of you? As I was planting out my cucumbers yesterday I noticed dozens of sprouts, upon closer examination I saw that they were from a rogue tomato that got away from me last year. OK so that's not so odd, except NONE of my WS tomatoes have sprouted! What's that all about?

Sonoita, as someone recently pointed out to me, the ground is warmer than the soil in your WS containers, so stuff in the ground is likely to sprout first.

Seems upside down. Maybe I should go and put seeds in the ground and see who sprouts first.

I'm thinking I starting my WS late for my area. My seedlings, those that have sprouted are still rather small, and my planting time is now, the beginning of April. I had hopped to have more mature plants and a higher germination rate.
Now what I have learned is that peaty pots in tubs get too wet & too dry too easily even with a lid. Styrofoam cups in tubs w/ lids work at ~80% germination. My milk jugs have ~70% germination thus far. Strawberry flats are EXTREMELY temperamental and need close monitoring, grocery bags around them when they are wet helps tremendously, but still I won't use them again. My jugs that were not soaked in a basin of water every 3 days or so dried out quickly, so I need to get large deep platters/pans to ensure uniform wetness.
Any feed back?

My seeds are planted in 2 liter bottles and half gallon milk jugs. They are jammed into platic milk crates. I take the milk crates one at a time and set them down into an old kitty litter pan full of water. I leave them there for a few minutes and then put another one in. It was the easiest way that I could put together for watering without disturbing seed or sprouts.

that sounds like it works pretty well. i use a spray bottle ... not the best in the world, as i'm always stooped over and it does not thoroughly wet the soil, only top layer or so ... but it keeps the seeds damp.

Hmmm....my wintersown seeds always sprout before those in the ground. The containers would definitely fluctuate more in temps than the ground, they reach higher temps than the ground when its warm, but freeze solid again easily when the temps drop.

My zone and micro climate is such things dry out pretty quickly if not closely watched. We are having a lot of wind these past 2 weeks, which doesn't help.

I've never watered my containers or seedlings, but our climate is pretty wet in spring.

Our climate is pretty wet here is spring, too. My pots have been staying moist for the most part, though a few are drying out. I've been using a watering can to sprinkle them when they get dry. Some seem to be staying too moist, though so far it doesn't seem to be affecting the sproutlets much. So far, so good, though I've had zero germination of columbines and only one variety of digitalis has sprouted. I was hoping for more, but maybe they will still come.

Karen

I've had no action in any of my columbine containers, either. Are they difficult to germinate? Some were saved seeds, from friends' plants, so I guess I don't know if those are sterile or not, but there was a whole packet of Barlow Mixed colors that I purchased, that I would have thought would grow.

I do have digitalis sprouting. . .TONS of them. I think I oversowed those by quite a bit! I'll definitely be taking a bunch of those to the Iowa Round-Up next month! They'll probably still be tiny, but with this many, I could give everyone ten and still have dozens left over! LOL

Too funny. My spell-check didn't like the word "oversowed" and wants to replace it with "oversexed." I think I need a more botanically-based dictionary! LOL

Angie

Totally normal for Columbines to be very erratic germinating. I have 6 or 8 varieties sown, and 2 have sprouted, and I think this is the earliest I've ever had any Columbine up. I won't give up on any of those containers till July (..yep, once I even had a container wait that long to sprout!).

My containers all seem fine with moisture.

As for columbine, I sowed 6 varieties and 1 has sprouted. I really think zone, sow date and local conditions will cause many variabilities with this process. A zone 8 person cannot really expect the same results as a zone 5. A more arid garden cannot expect the same results as a more humid one. That being said two people in zone 6 can have completely different results as well as one may have more shade or rain than the other. That is why I keep records so that I know what works for me.

For items that you want mature plants, purchase at a nursery or start early indoors. That is not what this is method is about. For me wintersowing is a money saving way of stocking my garden with a larger variety of plants. I may not have large plants to start off with, but they catch up pretty quickly. For example; even though I can w/s impatiens I don't. The plants don't mature enough to bloom until July/Aug. Therefore, I purchase them from the nursery for earlier color.

With Columbine, I've read that it also depends on the age of the seed. The fresher the seed the faster they germinate, but as the seed ages the seed coat hardens, requiring more freezing/thawing and time to sprout.

I used a different potting mix for several containers this year that is very free draining, and have had to watch those a little closer for moisture. The peat based mixes hold moisture better for me (sometimes too well, which is why I tried another this year).

I've had very high germination rates with the native columbine Aquilegia canadensis in the past. Sometimes it did take a while, though.

Angie, maybe spell check is correct. Perhaps your digtalis is oversexed.

LOL!!!!

gemini sage: which potting mix did you use that is NOT peat based? Just curious

Karen

I finally sowed some more seeds today. Took me nearly 2 hours to sow the following:

Maiden Pinks
Malva 'Mystic Merlin'
Malva 'Snow White'
Penstemon Barbatus 'Iron Maiden'
Penstemon 'Miniature Bells'
Verbascum 'Banana Custard'
Verbascum 'Phoenicium Hybrids'
Alcea rosea 'Chater's Double Icicle'
Alcea rosea 'Creme De Cassis'
Viola 'Syletas' (Cyclamen Leaved Violet)
Viola 'Freckles'
Viola x hybrida 'Magnifico'
Viola x hybrida 'Blue Shades'
Achillea 'Cherries Jubilee'

Karen

Karen, it was Wonder brand I got from Lowes. It was really cheap, so I tried a bag and was surprised to find it's pretty good. It has a lot of fine bark in it and drains well. I've used it for my tender bulb plants and Rex begonias, they seem to be happy with it. I won't use it for my hanging baskets or smaller pots of annuals though, its too free draining for those. I think it will be good for geraniums too.

Did you try it for any seed starting? I've wondered about the ones containing bark and how well they'd sprout seeds.

Karen

Karen, I did (use it for indoor seed starting), and have been very pleased with it as a starting medium. I've had a tendency in the past to keep peat based mediums too wet, but this stuff worked like a charm. I sterilized it in the microwave first.

Thanks. I have made my own similar mixes for summer containers with fine pines, peat, perlite, and vermiculite. But I never tried it for seed starting, thought those bark chips might not be the best medium for seed starting. I hope I can remember that next year.

Karen

Did you hear a big loud Yippee about 1/2 an hour ago? That was me.

I am so happy to tell you that while I was away from home for three days something magical happened. It may have started before I left but I neglected to have a look at my containers the week before I left. I have three containers with sprouts!!!^_^!!!

2 containers are California Poppy and the other container is Wallflower. I am ecstatic
.
I had to rush in and tell DH about the first container and then show him the Wallflower sprouts. Then I checked the containers at the back end of the back yard and voila - there were the California Poppies just waiting to be discovered.

Since this is my first try at WSing I am amazed. Gobsmacked seems to be my word for the day and I am truly gobsmacked!

Thanks to all who stuck with me and encouraged me when I had so many reservations. And Critter if you are reading this - yes - you get to share in my successes and I am giving you credit, along with Neal for my successes. I love the plural. Not just success, successes. Can't wait to see more now. I am addicted.

Thanks to all and I will keep you posted on further successes. So if you were actually wondering what that shrill noise was that probably shook the earth just a wee bit - it was me hooting and hollering and making a total fool of myself but I don't care.
After all I have germination and it is a wonderful feeling.

Take care all

Happy germinating!

Elaine and Otis

Congratulations!

Karen

way to go

See what a little potting soil and a lot of faith will get you? So glad they're finally peeking out and showing you that your hope wasn't in vain!

Congrats Elaine! We'll be hearing all kinds of squeals of joy in the next few weeks!

I do the same thing Elaine and this is my 3rd year!!

Me, too! I keep dragging the kids out to see all the little sprouts, and enthusing about it to my husband. He responds with a practical, "Well, isn't that what seeds are supposed to do? Sprout?"

I even take pictures of my little green babies.

Congrats, Elaine! So glad that you've seen the success of this method with your own eyes!

Angie

Well wonder of wonders - I finally have some sprouts too! :::

aconitum carmichaeli - 1 sprout
digitalis laevigata - 2 and a few more coming
digitalis purpurea - several!!!
digitalis trojana - 1 and several more beginning to peek
delphinium grandiflorum - 4
gaillardia -oranges & lemons - 1
lewisia - several!!

If I only get one for every thousand maple sprouts I've been pulling out of my yard, I'll be happy!

Oh those darned Maple keys. They were prolific here the fall before last and I thought I would lose my mind (that might explain a lot eh?) pulling all the sprouts up. I had used leaves from a neighbour and he has maple trees. They seem to have years where there is an abundance of keys and that year they were everywhere. I was really a newbie about mulching and didn't do a very good job. I learned the hard way and vowed never again.

You live. You learn. Seems that is the evolution of Elaine. I learn a bit almost everyday of my life. Too bad that by the time I have reached maximum absorption I'll probably start to get senile and forget everything it took me a lifetime to learn. That is so not fair. But nobody said life is fair now did they.

Once again

Happy germinating all ^_^

Hugs Elaine and Otis

Well I'm definitely past the maximum absorption stage, but I did learn to rake those buggers up, and don't know how many millions I raked in the fall to avoid this, but apparently millions more everywhere and they're not particular at all about where they sprout - in soil, in mulch, on top of leaves, on top of rocks. I believe that if they were floating in space they'd sprout there too. I do believe that when the world is inherited by cockroaches and such, there will be sycamore maples there to keep them company.

>>I do believe that when the world is inherited by cockroaches and such, there will be sycamore maples there to keep them company.


PM... that was actually funny. i have the same thing with Buckthorn seedlings. and if i dont get them first year, the roots are really tough to get out.

Congrats, Elaine! We all knew you'd get sproutlets! Oh, ye of little faith. Now we're all believers and I, for one, am totally converted to this method of seed sprouting. Love, love, love it.

Angie

Congrats Elaine, I told you that your seeds were just procrastinators! LOL

tcs, I guess we all have our own particular thorny issues in our garden. Hope you find all your buckthorn sprouts in time.

My #1 issue right now are pill bugs eating my seedlings I put into the garden from WS. ARGH!

Congrats, Elaine! That is very exciting! I'm still waiting on my digitalis seeds. I've sowed a number of different varieties, and no sproutlets on them yet. Nothing on the columbines, either. Lots of other stuff up, though.

Karen

Sprouts in the Penstemon digitalis, foxglove beardtongue, containers today. Still nothing from Carex, Asclepias, or Eupatorium, and very little from Aster and Liatris containers. Looking forward to the coming week, when it should finally warm up for a good stretch.

Getting green mold in some of the containers. Have popped tops and re-taped askew to let in more air.