Never seen this forum go so long without being busy.
Hugs to all and double hugs if you are still stuffed from last week
Lavina
Where is everybody?
We are having very cold weather here in Zion..... my GH dedicated entirely to coleus got down to 24 f. I thought I lost everything due to a faulty power switch. I had to be sedated for a few days. I finally got the nerve to go check out the damage and was very happy to see that only a few were completely gone, the rest just got set back a few weeks by loss of leaf and limb. Very upsetting but they should be fine . Now I am leaving to visit my mom for 2 weeks and I have to trust my GH to ...well lets just say not very responsible people. I have not seen my mom for 10 years and I am just dreading this trip for what I'll come home to. Who would have thought that a cutting from a neighbor 6 months ago would have led to a green house full of hundreds of coleus and the responsibility of raising them.
I was wondering where everyone was also! My Coleus cuttings that I took early October are getting so big and it is only the end of November. They are already outgrowing their little pots and taking over my spare room and sunny windowsills! They sure are pretty and I am enjoying them :D
Yes they are very addictive as I started with a few then joined Dave's in 2001 then was giving 40 cuttings and it has gone on from there. Last year I lost all my coleus due to new green house so I have learned a lot. Now keep my favorites in the back bed room over winter. I will learn how to operate the GH yet.
Lavina
Got all of my 30 coleus standards (first year from cuttings) and lots of little pots of rooted cuttings from August in the basement under a 1000 watt gro-light. They are doing very fine. I've treated them with a granular systemic with no pests in sight. We had our first dusting of snow, with almost 4" predicted for Saturday. Yuk. Thinking of spring.
do you have a pic of those standards?
I keep meaning to get some pics of them, and I will soon. Promise. They grew really well this first year, with some attaining more than three feet. This growth was all from 3" rooted cuttings ordered from Rosy Dawn and Gephart's. I guess all that side-pinching forced the vertical growth since others that I didn't train as standards grew bushy and low. If I can keep them going over the winter, next year I plan to have them "thicken up", both the top growth and stems which I keep staked, although I think they look pretty good even now.
I'll try to get some pics ASAP.
Send some pics of your light too. Wow, a 1000 w light? Does that cost a fortune? I just have plain ole 4 ft shop lights. My plants are doing pretty well, and outgrowing the space already.
I read somewhere on here once, that Rosy Dawn gives discounts to Dave's Garden members. I wonder if that is in effect this year (i.e. now), too? I see some I'd like to order. (oh-oh - I better buy some more lights).
sometimes there are heat mat co-ops too. I wish someone would do a mylar co-op. good for reflecting light back onto plants... waiting to hear about rdg co-ops too...
Rosy Dawn did a wonderful coop for DG last January- $1 off every plant. That's where I got hooked. I also bought some from Gebhart's, but they didn't have any specials for us. I don't know who organized the RD special, but it wasn't the first year, and with the economy, I bet it comes up again. Watch for it.
I plan to take some photos today (plants and light setup) while we get dumped on with snow. We had steady rain all day yesterday, now it's starting to snow and we're supposed to get at least 3".
OK. Took some photos for those interested. This is a shot of almost all my coleus standards and rooted cutting in the basement under the 1000 watt grow light. I have a stand fan on a timer that turns on for an hour every two hours to keep the air circulating. There are a couple dozen standards and lots of small pots of rooted cuttings. All have been treated with granular systemic, which I have had great success with preventing mealybugs and white flies. They all get a very weak solution of fertilizer with every watering which is only about once a week over the winter. I'll have to start pinching after Christmas, but won't save any of the cuttings until later in the spring...don't have room!
Here's another shot of the packed in coleus.
Here're some of the standards pulled out for easier viewing. You can see they need pinching, which I will do soon.
Here are two of my favorite standards in the sunroom which are doing quite nicely with the southern exposure. The one on the right is Blair's Witch (the tallest of all my standards) and the left one is El Brighto. The potted one is a cutting from the El Brighto standard taken in August.
Gorgeous!
Here's a photo of the grow light I use. It's a 1000 watt Hortilux Blue lamp that I purchased at Worm's Way. It really puts out the light, and it is effective even 8-10 feet above the plants which means one lamp will "cover" a large area of plants. However, it's pricey at $240. And, it requires a ballast, reflector, and special cord. But, it lasts for years and years (they told me), so it's cost effective for my needs. I hope to sell some of the coleus standards and by being able to overwinter so many cuttings along with the standards, I figure the setup will pay for itself in two years. (Rooted cuttings from Rosy Dawn and Gephart's are about $5 each.)
BTW, the light is much, much brighter when fully warmed up. This pic is taken just after turning it on or else the photo would be impossible. It's like looking at the sun!
Here's the ballast (kind of like a transformer) that is needed with the light. ($200) The special cord is $28, the reflector hood is $80, and the timer is a deal at $10!
Finally, here's my second grow light in the sunroom's only dark corner. It's very effective. The ballast transformer box is on the other side of the wall. It hums and is unsightly, so when we had the sunroom build, we planned ahead to have it hidden. You can see that although the light is way up high, the plants love it.
Well, I'm 30,000 feet in the air flying home with a box of coleus cuttings I have rescued from my trip to Texas and Arkansas.... Wow is it cold there. I can't believe what I go through for these plants. Is it an addiction or do they have special mind control powers. I have now travelled with these cuttings for 14 days and they are still looking awesome. Just please let me get them home to Zion safely. Also it is great to know that you can travel with plants or cuttings with no problems at Security...... they just can't be in water. They tell me my GH is doing fine but I will not rest till I see for myself : )
Thanks for the pics and info Hoosier! Wow, that is some light alright. I guess I'll be sticking to shop lights for awhile. Wow, expensive. Hmmm, come to think of it. I'm now at 22 of the 4 ft shop lights, and at about $10 each......
- Amazing what we do for these coleus, but I sure do love them.
That El Brighto looks like a gem. I think I'll order one this year.
Does anyone have 'autumn'. It's another one I'm thinking of ordering. Ha! I only have about 33 varieties now, so I definetly need more.
I used to use shop lights, and they were fine, but I needed to keep them so close to the plants, they wouldn't work for the standards. Like you figured, the cost might be close (six of one, half dozen of the other), but hey, if it works for you, go with it. I just hope the light bulb lasts for the years it's supposed to. So far, my sunroom one has lasted three years.
Keep warm!
Can't wait till spring, hurry up
But I am rushing life so guess I better slow down. It was 20 degrees at my house this AM. Bet all of Fla.has frozen flowers.
Lavina