Lessons learned for next year #2

I know the pansy's can, I don't know about the monkey flowers.

Thanks Pauline..

And I thought I was just about done, lol
I ended up doing a total of 20 gallons and 1 half gallon jugs yesterday.
Looks like I will have lots more to do this coming week...
Hope to get them done b4 we get the rain they are saying we are suppose to get..

We ended up getting 4 inches of snow between yesterday and this morning,
now the sun is shining bright with a few scattered clouds... Looks so pretty out....

Really looking forward to Spring this year, and to see what all grows...

Connie

Thank you all for the reply's. Here at five in the afternoon the degrees are +3 c.All the seeds I am sowing is sommer flowers and vegetables,best to do that in doors in the spring,some I can sow out in the fall, but I did'nt.
Zenpotter.
Helsinge is in north zeeland ,in east Denmark.Its a small town about 60 km from Copenhagen.I live about 2,5 km out side Helsinge in the country.Its nice out here

40 degrees at 2:20 PM

:(

Susan

33 AT 2:38

When did this turn into the weather channel? ;^)
Rosa, Do you understand that this is a different technique from sowing seeds in your house during winter? If you look further up the thread you can find a link that explains it all.

I'm just kinda bummed its too cold for me to go out and work all day. I'm going into gardening addiction relapse. Part of the meaning and purpose of my life is in the garden. :)

Susan

Oh I wasn't complaining Susan.
40 degrees is cold?? Y'all are spoiled down there!

okay.. okay.. I know I'm spoiled.. But I still want it to be warmer outside Dave!! Maybe we should talk about this again when it's 100 down here in the shade (and I DO go outside to work morning and night) and your in a nice cool 80 degree day!!! :)

Susan

More weather: It is quite windy today. Should the jugs be covered? It is still above freezing, but we have big gusts of wind. I wonder whether it might not dry them out and chill (wind chill) them???

Hi Rosa,
To follow up on what Dave47 was saying, if you check out www.wintersown.org you'll find that the people on this thread are sowning seed, slightly protected in their container, outdoors, usually after the winter solstice (mid-late Dec). This method is perfectly acceptable for hardy annuals and hardy perennials. It's explained in great detail there, with directions for containers and which seeds are appropriate for using this method. I'm trying it for the first time this year (very small scale) because I have horrible experiences with early indoor sowing. Nothing worse than carefully sowing and tending those little seeds and seedling and finding them folded in two one day:LOL: You might consider trying a couple of containers out in your area just to see if it works for you.

Clementine, No, the jugs stay uncovered even up here where it is well below freezing.
Dave

Thank you, Dave, It was not so much the cold as the fierce wind, that would both dry out and chill the jugs even more. But I understand your point, thanks again.
C.

I think this wintersowing is a huge leap of faith the first year you do it. So far, I don't have all those worries in my 2nd year. I sure did last year!

What do you all do about the slugs, I didn't have much luck last year and I seem to think it was the slugs because I picked a few out of the jugs and I noticed a lot outside this year. I bought some cheap sandpaper at the dollar store but I don't think that will last long, any other suggestions?

haa Dave your right... I just looked at all those containers and just waited and waited and then i was like whoooooo!! All these plants and only one of me!! :)

Slugs wont cross copper wire I hear. I crush all my egg shells, spread around hostas and it's like a razor blade to their slimmy little bodies.

Susan

I've got a bunch of egg shells but they wash away from the rain, I feel like I would have to put a flat piece of copper under each jug and there will be too many for that, I only have 20 done right now but I've got a lot more to go! lol

you could always use precious beer and set traps as a last resort... poor in tuna can and put them down in the ground and the slugs will drown in it.

Susan

The product "sluggo" is environmentally ok, I believe; maybe sprinkling it around the jugs would work. I'm so glad you mentioned an issue with slugs. I wouldn't have thought of it -- but slugs just love my garden, and I'm sure they'd find the winter-sown stuff in no time.

Too bad copper is so dear right now. I used to buy thin soft copper sheets in 10 foot rolls (and about a foot wide), maybe $10 a roll, for craft projects. It would be great to unroll and set the jugs on it, and roll it up again for next year.

Funny.. I have no problem picking up worms and love them in my garden dearly. I get upset when my kids handle them too rough.... But a slug ohhhhhhhhhh noooooooooooo.. I cringe when I've accidentally put my hand under a pot and one was waiting for me. They are the cockroaches of the garden.

Susan

So far, no problem with slugs. I get a few on my hostas some summers, but that is it. 'knock on wood'.

soulgarden - me, too! Just disgusting to touch, even accidentally.

Susan, LOL..Perfect analogy for those creepy critters.

I've heard about putting beer in a swallow container. I wonder what the beer does to the slugs that water couldn't do. Does it get them drunk?

This message was edited Feb 19, 2007 10:09 AM

It's the yeast in the beer that draws them.

LeBug, They are creeping into your jugs? Wow! I've never seen a slug in winter. But I can vouch for escar go. It is like sluggo. Both have no chemicals and really work. Garden's Alive sells escar go. They are a good company even though their sister companies are questionable.
Dave

Oh, so they basically drown.

They drown as little disgusting drunks.

hahahahaha
drunk slugs they are!!

It would freeze in the winter though wouldn't it? I have seen the big slugs on a warm day in the winter creep up a shelf to get to my jugs here, honestly! He was about 3" long! I was thinking along the lines of something a little drier for the winter to put under them.

How about trying gravel?

Escar go is a granule

aw, didn't know that, will have to check it out, thanks, I've kind of looked around for it at the stores here but I've never found it.

"LeBug" do you think there is some irony here??

:)

Susan

Funny, Susan!

Lea - just Google the product and they may tell you where you can buy it. If they don't carry it locally then try to Google Sluggo.

Hey Lea, couldn't you use those small stones they use for Aquariums (sp?)

All of the rocks in our aquariums are smooth, we have 3, I think I will paint a big piece of plywood with sand for next year, I may do it now if the weather gets a little warmer, I think it has to be like no colder than 40 for the paint to dry? I've got paint and I've got sand and a big ole piece of plywood :-) I was really wanting to put them on the ground though, sounds like that is the best place for them to be, maybe I just didn't have any luck WS last year, I did have some things come up. Most of them were on pallets though.

Does sand really kill slugs?

Diatomateous earth is supposed to work well, but I've never heard of sand...

Karen

I put sand around my hostas seems to work, it's on the same order of egg shells isn't it? They don't like to crawl on sharp objects so I figure it will work, now if the weather warms up enough to get out there and do it lol