new gardener

I am a fairly new gardener, and would like some seeds (SASE) for zone 5, partial to full shade. I am also new at starting seeds, I don't want to waste good seedif they are hard to start, I've been warned to expext a few setbacks on starting seeds. If anyone could help, I would really appreciate it. Julie

Write back to me and I'll get you started!

dignbloom,I to have the shade to work with I have some coreopsis seed which makes a bush about 2-3' with yellow daisy like flowers on it.It blooms all summer into fall here in zone 6/7.It's best in full but I've found it's equally hardy in partial shade.If you'd like some just e-mail me with SASE I have plenty!Daisylou

I have some purple cleome seed. It grows to about 5' tall and has many purple blooms at the top of a "head" of flowers. It's sometimes called spider flower because it puts out long skinny seed pods that look like spider legs. I find it hard to start inside and then plant outside, but it's easy to germinate outside as long as you keep it moist. It's a good plant to screen out background with, or just good at the back of the bed. I hae seen some shorter ones with many more blooms recently, so I am going to try to try pinching back a few this year, while they're young and see if they put on more branches.
It blooms in mid-late summer through fall. When you save seed, make sure that the pod is really full and beginning to turn brown. If you open a pod and the seeds are light tan, it is too early; they should be black. Foxglove is also an excellent plant that can take about half shade and is a little shorter than cleome, so it would fit nicely in the back of a bed but just in front of the cleome. Foxglove is generally a biennial, blooming the second year, but there is one called purpura (commonly called "Foxy" that will bloom the first year if you have a fairly long summer and/or start the seeds indoors. I am getting ready to start mine now. I don't have extra seeds of those, but perhaps someone at DG will.