Star, talking about delphiniums ... I have one in the garden that is trying to rebloom, in another day or 2 it should be in full bloom. I can't believe that it wasn't hurt by the frost we had last week. First time for a delph to rebloom for me.
Lala, loved the 'popping seed story'.
Cottage Garden Seed Swap and Chat #41
Ruellia pop, at least the pink ones I have. Found that out the same way you did Lala, but only blamed the cats one night, and luckily didn't think of mice ;-)
Hahahahha.. Poor doggy, ya shoudl giv e him an extra biscuit. and too funyn about mice traps. : ) Oh ya there lot s of seed s that pop.
yep was ruellia seeds and ducking in the kitchen that I first learne d how they pop.
Now there soem silent poppers too. The one year I gathered all kind sof milkweed pods and put them on the coutner, figured I woudl get to them later and didn't and they poppe d open and had snow all over the house.
toofew... Cool. I usually cut mine back when they done blooming and they will bloom again, btu nevr had oen bloom this late in the season. I love Delph's with pansies.
Imazdi. What ya feel lost about? What ya need help with?
Ella, when do Delphiniums bloom for you, and what kind do you grow? I've been searching for years for Delphiniums that can take our summer heat. I know of some gardeners in Florida that grow them as winter blooming annuals.
Me too, ME TOO! Inquiring minds want to know! I've been wanting Delphiniums since I visited a bunch of gardens in England 9 years ago, but no luck with our heat...
Lala, your story was funny! I found seeds all over the other morning too and know who the culprit probably was. One of our cats had been eyeing the seed plates on the light rack, it had to be her! It was a plate of Peacock Orchid seeds.
I thought I would try and see if they would come true next year. Plant Files says no but this site suggests yes http://www.hort.wisc.edu/mastergardener/Features/bulbs/Gladiolus_murielae/Gladiolus_murielae.htm Has anyone tried Peacock Orchid from seed?
They're a species, so they should do well from seed. I can get most glads to survive the winter here, but Acidantheras never do. I really like them, need to try some more and get in the habit of digging them.
For delphiniums I grow the Pacific Giants. Supposedly delphs aren't suppose d to be able to grow down here, btu they do for sure.
Mine start blooming in April and May until June. They durign the hottest months of July and August they go somewhat dormant and come back up in September and October with new growth, but usually don't bloom. Durign July and August I usually have some shade over them.
I also grow the the Dwarfs. The dwarfs look more liek airy plants and they don't get as tall, btu they wil have loads and loads of small blooms all ove r them at all times. They not a s striling a s the Pgiants but they are pretty too.
The biggest problem folsk have with delpiniums is they bury the crowns. They bury them too deep. They hate wet feet big time. it rots them out in aheart beat if t hey kept wet too long and it stops growth and bud formations.
I had somebody who planted hudnreds of Delphs and they burie d the corwns and almost lost all the plants. Had to go back and redo them all over and pull up the crowns. Was a nightmare.
This pic is one I did bed for local college. This bed is surroudned by pure hot cement and full sun all day long . I just kept deadheaded and they kept on blooming til about july.
Had planters fileld with delpiniums and othe r smalle r plants too all over the place.
If you mulch them over durign the winter. You need to make sure come spring you get that mulch all removed and dig aroudn and make sure crown is unburied too. Even a quarter inch of excess soil on crowns is enough to keep them from growing an dblooming properly.
I think you get enough spring and fall growing season for them to do their thing. Seems here it gets hot too quickly in spring, and the stunts their development. I've had some luck with the dwarf, airy types, but they mostly behave as annuals or biennials at best.
Thanks for the delphiniums tips, Starlight!
I need some Delphiniums this year... I have not had luck with them -- YET -- but i do believe i had "old" seeds... so wasnt expecting much.
I'd love blue or white, or both if anyone had any to spare.
Ugggggg... here comes the rain AGAIN.
tcs... Did you start them in the dark? The best way to start them is to put in little seed trays and make sure ya have sterile seed mix. Just barely moist cuz they wil be in baggy for up to three weeks in soem cases and too much water and they wil rot.
Put in trya in baggy and hid e in dark for anywahere s from 12 to 24 days. Ya just have to remember to go and check them every few days after the 12th day and soon a s ya see a sprout them mov e them into the light.
They not the easiest thign to germinate. One of them patient plants.
edited to add they need to be in dark and kept at 60-65 degrees to germinate.
This message was edited Oct 8, 2009 8:28 AM
Ya know, germination has always been the easy part for me with Delphiniums. Its bugs, slugs, then heat that are my problems. I just winter sow them and they sprout pretty reliably. Of course, that may be part of my problem- perhaps I'd need an earlier start so they can get established before the heat sets in. Hmmmm....wonder if I could get them going in the cold frame this winter, and have plants far enough along by spring to actually bloom?
yes star i did... i saw chatter of putting them in the frig... they were in there for months... but i do recall on the baggie - it stated old seeds, use immediately. so i wasn't expecting much.
OH 60-65 huh? guess i have to find a better place
"thunbergia black eyed susan vine pops" ..... I will try to keep this in mind. I finally have a small BES vine that has survived the weird summer and I would like to try to collect seeds to replant next year..... am I looking for separate seed pods to form or is it part of the bloom or what?
By the way, I received the penstemon X mexicalli "red rocks" in the swap last year (sorry I don't remember from who) and it is finally blooming.... I just love it! Now I am looking for some different penstemons..... anyone have any to share?? I have Huskers Red and Ruby Tuesday coming at a RU next week..... but would love to have some of the more dramatic colors - reds, blues, purples......
I am not having much luck trying to collect seed from the few things I have,,.... way too much rain here for anything to dry out and most plants are beaten down..... I have some 4:00 seeds and some Grandpa Otts MG and that is about it so far. I am thinking of buying a few seeds to be able to have some to offer......
Genna
Genna, Swallowtail Gardens is a great seed source that has excellent prices on larger packs of seeds. I had way more of everything I ordered from them than I needed.
Did any of you get seeds from your California Poppies? Mine were so pretty this summer, but I never found any seed pods. I've grown them before and had no problem harvesting seeds, maybe I just missed them? I really want more for next year though.
This message was edited Oct 8, 2009 10:09 AM
Thanks Neal.... I will check them out .... I just carried away wanting all of them!! ^_^
I said I was not going to attempt WS as many as I did last year .... but I can already see me wanting this and wanting that - might as well start saving my water jugs!!
Genna
The darnable thing is - you winter sow all the seeds and soooooo many germinate - and then what do I do with all the little plants?
I germinated spirea this year - I had about 18 little shrubs that will grow up to be much bigger shrubs. I gave away most - but I still have 7. I have to get these out of their pots and into the ground soon - but even so - what will I do on a city lot with SEVEN spirea?
I hope I can find good homes for them in the spring.
funny you mention Spirea....
i found one growing in one of my flower beds.... about 150' from the nearest shrub. I do have one that is about 90% dead... i really need to pull it ... not sure what i will replace it with. I believe the reason we planted it there was to cover/hide the pipes for the sprinkler system. I wonder if they transplant well.... i could just move the other one over ... as i do not like the spot that one is in..... I'd rather have flowers there. OH well... maybe next year.
Genna, I've collected a few seeds from my thunbergia this summer. They form inside the two leaves that the flower grows out of. At first I wasn't getting any, so I went out with a tiny paint brush and 'played bee' (guess I've been hanging around you all long enough ;). About a couple weeks later I had seed pods, and then a few more weeks for them to be ready. My daughter loved them! When they split open, each half of the pod is about perfect to be a saucepan for the 'littlest pet shop' critters :) Still haven't gotten many, and you really have to keep an eye on them or they go and split when you're not looking!
I realized I did something soooo stupid! Had my little envie of Salvia subrotunda seeds, and came across some more dried heads, and added those seeds to the envie. Well, went out to do some garden chores and noticed the Salvia lyrata Purple Knockout, and realized those are what I just added to the S.subrotunda! Grrrrrrr....! Guess I ought to just toss in some of every Salvia I've got and call 'em a Salvia surprise mix, LOL. It's particularly irritating because one gets 8" tall and the other 4' tall! Hmmm....guess that could be kinda interesting, since the tall one is kinda naked at the bottom of the stem.
I also just ran across some dried heads marked Rudbeckia triloba, which I thought I'd already cleaned? I've evidently come across some unmarked Rudbeckia seed heads and mistook them for the R.triloba.
Oh well, I'm sure I look the part of the absent minded eccentric out in the garden, out there talking to myself with 6 cats following me around, LOL!
OH Neil -- i'd LOVE salvia surprise!!
I think this is what my Flax may end up being....
The good thing is they're started the same way anyway, and you can tell which is which by the time they get some true leaves. I believe I'll be able to get some more of each, and hopefully have the presence of mind to label them at the time, LOL.
so far... i've been lucky with my salvias, in keeping them separate. I wish they produced more seeds though... I dont have a lot to trade.
I'll have a wide variety of salvia seeds to offer this year, too, for you salvia lovers. Hoping to get some off of the salvia mexicana 'limelight' and salvia 'blue chiquita' but they are fall bloomers and I don't know if I will have seeds in time. Has anyone gotten seeds from salvia leucantha? I looked for some last year as wasn't successful.
Tonya
Terese
Glad you mentioned the flax. You were talking about it earlier and I remembered you gave me some last year the blue and the ' red.' The plants looked different as the foliage was finer on one I believe it was the blue but the one that was supposed to be red was also blue. It was a larger plant and the foliage was not as fine as the blue. Seems like the flowers on the supposed to be red were a little smaller but the plant and foliage was larger. Am I making any sense? I liked them both and the 'real' blue ones lasted all summer. I still have the plants but I think the other ones are gone.
Thanks for the seed again
Veronica
Veronica... the problem i was having in ID'ing which was which was.... the foliage is brown already...
though i have new growth with the blues... they are popping up all over, that and yarrow - which i am now pulling out.
I found the "Red" blooms quite dainty... and yes, smaller than the blue. I love the blue the way it looks like a field of blue. I took a nice photo of blue flax and white yarrow... it was very pretty.
I have an unidentified plant almost in bloom out there. It must be from the swap, but I have no idea what it is for some reason. Looks like a Salvia perhaps. I'm going to get pictures soon and see if anyone recognizes it.
ok so far i have like 20 baggies of cypress vine seeds white ones. baged up know i need to put scientific name and stuff.
and know i gotta get some more in baggies and so fort. how many do i have to have and what do i do after i get them bagged up. thats where i got lost at. and so many threads shoot forgot which i posted on. hehe
Boy did I miss you guys! :-)) Just the thought of winter coming and my plants dying and now I'm thinking about wintersowing, lol!
Andrea
imz --
I think the one thing that differs from other swaps i've seen is...
you just list what you have... there is no min or max
here is a link to what mine was like last year.... I made a list of the seeds i had, listed how many baggies of each seed, then when someone said they wanted it [usually in Dmail] I'd add them to my list until that type of see was gone.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=5785206
OH -- just found the full list of seed offerings.
as you will see, some folks offered A LOT of varieties, where others may have had a few types.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/923393/
I know my first year in the piggy swap, I had maybe 10-15 types of seeds, but took home over 200+ varieties... that is just the way it went last year.
Hope this doesnt sound too over whelming... it really isnt.
Just offer what you have, and choose the seeds you would like to have.
Terese
Neal it sounds like you are having a year like me lol I got my annual white salvia seeds mixed in with my white profusion, I know don't ask LOL Of course that one wasn't hard to figure out but mixing the kew blue and purfume lime nicotiana,wasn't good or the red and pink dianthus LOL
imzadi, sounds like you are doing just fine all we are doing now is cleaning seeds and bagging and tagging you'll know when we have to do anything else just keep getting those seeds :) Making a list of them will help as you go, I hope I can do that so far I haven't started one lol
Lea -- that are WHITE salvias????
heck if i woulda known that, you coulda tossed some in the box with the Monarda.
Uggg - gotta get to bed.. heading north in the morning.
Thanks for posting that pic Starlight. I thought that the heat was why I couldn't grow them here but not anymore. I haven't had any success with them yet and really want to grow them. Do you know how to get around the T&M suggestion of keeping them at 60 degrees for several weeks?
Ansonfan.. Do you have a basement at all that ya coudl put them in? If I had to germinate seeds at a cooler temp have also used a fan in the room . Liek when putting seeds under a bed or in a closet to get total dark, then have just put a small fan goign to keep temps circulating in that room cooler. Just make sure that it doesn't blow directly on the baggies.
Liek I have put stuff on floor in closet to germinate and then close d the door and put fan a little ways in front of the dorr one of them ocilating fans and just let the cool air blow that way and under the door or set the fan on the floor in bedroom close to floor and let go back and forth under bed.
Welcome back Andrea. : ) We starting about 2 weeks earlier with havign a large r group this year, and that way maybe everybody will get done before the Christmas holiday so I cna get troughs seperated and squeeling back across the country.
Yes Terese they are white annual salvias that reseed :) I'll put your name on some, aren't we all just a bunch of seed hogs lol SUUUU_EEEEE LOL I was wanting to collect more seeds off of them but we have had the storms going on all day and night last night and all day today last night just as I was signing off of the computer there was a BIG crack of lightning and we had tornado warnings out about 3 in the morning we are suppose to have tornado warnings out today so I'm making the best of it and washing all of my pots out or what I can get to got a bunch done yesterday, never realize how many I have until I start washing them then it's too many but when I go to sowing I never have enough LOL
Have a good trip Terese glad you got all of your plants in the ground :)
This seed to the white salvia was given to me in a trade a few years back as 'White Nymph' so that is what I put it in the swap for last year but only two people got it ( Bluesprial, frausnow) I googled it but couldn't find the real name but this is it so it's a white coccinea, Texas sage:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.floridata.com/wallpaper/jpg/Salvia_coccinea800white4.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.floridata.com/ref/S/salv_coc.cfm&usg=__jOmgEVQdEr6eXw78awtbWX8Zsbw=&h=600&w=800&sz=91&hl=en&start=14&tbnid=eZpjNeAVIk3Z9M:&tbnh=107&tbnw=143&prev=/images%3Fq%3DSalvia%2Bcoccinea%26hl%3Den%26rls%3DWZPA,WZPA:2006-10,WZPA:en
I have the red too :)
I just know all of this rain is knocking all of my seeds out of their little pods! :( My seed collecting may be at THE END :( I have two big seed pods on my cannas I'm hoping to get those if they don't rott! And still a LOT of rudbeckias that I want to collect!
Well, I see I have my homework cut out for me this weekend. I need to get up to snuff on what happened in last year's seed swap so I can oink properly and loudly, wiggle forcefully and scarf up my share of seeds!
Seriously, I need to get organized in a big way. We're supposed to have rain this weekend, so it might be a good time to review last year's posts and start counting out my seed packets, creating my lists, etc.
Neal and Tonya, please put me down for some of your sages. I'll check back in tomorrow.
Angie
Basically the trick is to check the thread constantly because when someone says I have X seeds available. They are usually oinked up within minutes! Lol : ) The first year the rules were a little stricter than last. You were 'supposed' to only ask for as many packs of seeds as you were sending. However the hostess still would send you back way more than you sent in, they were just her choice at that point. I remember it being a Wish List swap, and she would try and pick stuff from your wishlist. There werepeople that were sending in tons of seeds and for them it kinda turned into a free for all of people saying can I have these and then Suzy started saying - don't go being a piggy and then people started saying sorry I know I'm being a piggy but can I have these Oink Oink!? Lol That's where the Piggy Swap got named! : ) I got at least 100 types of seeds and I think I only sent in 30? Something like that.
Yep.. and we need to find the pic of our Queen Piggy and take a moment to giv e honor to her for startign the piggy swap.
Anybody know wher e the pic is of our Honorable Queen . The oen that forget who made. It was so cute. LOL
OH Star... ya mean the one piggy with the "staff" or whatever its called.
I'm pretty good at finding things....
and yes, Meredith... i do recall Suzy's original rule, but of course with the box that came from Alaska, we all got a ton of seeds back.