Growing from seed

Paige, I'm so jealous of your greenhouse!! Mine was doing just fine, set by an east-facing window; and I put a plant light in it for additional light. My cuttings and seedlings (that I got from the Oct plant swap) were doing fabulous. And then my cats decided to use it as jungle furniture. They ripped the top to shreds, and one cat was actually chewing on the plastic on the edges!! Ergh! I tried everything I could think of to keep those cats away from the greenhouse, but they outsmarted me at every turn. I ended up dismantling the greenhouse and putting the cuttings and seedlings behind closed doors in a bedroom, along the west-facing windowsill. The plants now get a bit less light, and I'm sad to say that most of the cuttings have perished. Cats!!!!

Carla

Sorry you lost those plants. I have had trouble with my cats also. But mainly just them getting up on the shelves and stepping on the seedling pots...I have it fixed so it would be very difficult for them to knock anything off and I only have the shelves and light fixtures, nothing to tear up. So I'm leaving part of a shelf for the window-sitters (they like to look out the window) and it's going pretty good. They also have the top shelf available for the one that likes to hide up there. I love my kitties and can't put the seedlings in any room they don't have access to (my place is small and I only shut off a bathroom).

I don't know your housing situation, but I am curious ..... am I the only one growing plants in my garage? I, too, have a cat and a dog and could not grow any plant anywhere in my home. So the garage was the logical choice for me. I know I live in a much warmer zone, but I also add lights and could add a heater if necessary. Just wondering if a garage is an option for anyone?

Not for me. We're building a carport...and someday we might be able to convert it to a garage, but even then it would be for the truck, with not a lot of room for other things.

Well, how are your seeds and seedlings so far? I'm having pretty good luck. I gave up on the few Pipevine's but will try again later. I've got Butterfly peas, Marigolds, Morning Glories, Moonvines, Lion's Tails, Mexican Sunflowers, Fennel and Dill.

I've also got a "blue flowering milkweed" that turned out to be Amsonia. One is about 2" tall and one just put out a root today so it went into a pellet.

AND I've got 2 Cassia's from the Christmas Cassia that I "stole" seeds from!! woohoo! Becky, I didn't have luck with the Cassia you sent me but I'm sure it's "operator error" which is why I only start a few seeds at a time, so I don't ruin them all at once. LOL

Oh yes, my reason for posting was wondering what to start feeding them with. Is there something special that I should use? I don't want to overdo it with them so I was thinking about a low # organic fertilizer. ??

I think maybe half strength, not sure though.

I received my pop up, but it looks like it might be inside out. It has these supports that show in the picture to be on the outside, but are actually on the inside. My DH are going to tackle it this weekend. After it's up, I'm planting a bunch of seeds. I'll let you know later, I can't even remember what I have. Oh, I've started 5 brug seeds I bought on Ebay, they havent' come up yet. That's kind of exciting, not knowing what they will look like. Oh, I hope they sprout.

What are butterfly peas? I always do moonvines too, love those.
I had been given a Cassia seedling last year but I think the cold killed it.

Good to hear that both KKB and Fly-Girl are on the "grow"! Especially you, Paige! Let me know if you need any more Privet Cassia seeds. I have more left and don't mind sending them out.

Speaking of the Cassia Privet ..... in the Fall I never saw any Clouded Sulphur Butterflies around the Privet, only the bush (Christmas ?) cassia plants. And then this winter I only saw them around the bush again, no interest in the Privet. So I was starting to think that the Sulphurs were NOT interested in Privet whatsoever. Well, low and behold, I recently saw an Orange Sulphur butterfly laying eggs on it. http://www.cirrusimage.com/butterfly_osulphur.htm This butterfly paid no attention to the bush cassias at all. That surprised me. So now I am thinking that certain species of Sulphur butterflies prefer certain cassia plants as host. The orange sulphur seemed larger than the Clouded Sulphur Butterfly and is really pretty with that sunset orange color. But it was very skittish of me trying to photograph it. Obviously not hand-raised. I was looking at the Privet today and can see eggs all over it. Here we go with the start of another season of butterflies! :-) :-) :-)

I haven't raised any cats lately. We have the occasional Monarch cat in our classroom, but I haven't raised anything recently because things have seemed to be pretty quiet in my yard. Looks as though that is changing with the arrival of Spring.

I am constantly amazed at the variety of butterflies I am now getting in my yard. A year ago I didn't see so many different kinds or as many total. Just goes to prove that if you plant it, they will come! I think it's going to be another good year for cats and butterflies! :-)

So glad to see Spring coming!! Nice to come up for air and see all of you here too! I have been tenaciously tending seedlings myself. Most are coming up, some I am still waiting on. I have transplanted some of the Red Zinnia and Italian ice Sunflowers and a few other things already. The Moonvines I re-sowed are coming up. The Yarrow and Red Hot Pokers are coming up good too. A total of about 60 different things from seed this year... We shall see!
I have 3 different Cassias which are all coming up. I have lots of Salvia Splendens with true leaves and are getting quite fluffy. Next week I should be able to put a lot more of the seedlings out in the beds as I have been taking them out every day to harden them off.

WTG Roxanne!! You got a pop up!! Your gonna love it!

Paige I would give the Pipevine more time...And if you want to start over there is still time to try this. Get a small pot or 2 and fill with soil. Bury a seed or 2 on each pot about 1/8-1/4" and water in well. Cover it or place in a large bag with the zipper open a bit, and put them in the fridge for about 1 month. Then take them out and expose to light and keep them moist. Seems a lot of seeds do better when they are cold stratified. They should come up. If you need any A. tomentosa just send me a SASBE, I have plenty still.

Fly, are you using a heated mat for those Brugs seeds? I could be wrong but I'm thinking I heard that from friends before. I've never even seen seeds on my plant. ? I'm going to transplant that baby into the ground in about 2 weeks! Good luck with that cold frame! I hope it's not defective. :( It won't be cold too much longer tho.

I'm not transplanting anything yet except a couple of Morning Glories. They can't stay inside any longer because they're climbing on the other plants. I'll start hardening off this week and make room to start more. I've done pretty good keeping them staggered so that I have enough lighting for the first few weeks then I move them to natural light.

The Butterfly pea vine is Clitoria ternatea (also seen is spelled Clitorea) http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/528/index.html I don't know what color mine is tho. I need to ask DonnaB. I'm curious to know if they are invasive also because I came upon a thread that said this yesterday. I'm still waiting on my Snail Vine.

Go Becky! Can't wait to see pics of those! I potted this one Cassia before our first freeze and have kept it inside and now it's suddenly decided to croak on me. I have no idea if it got too hot, cold, too much water or what. Figures! I can't wait for my new babies to get big and look like a real plant.

Deb, you're probably right about the cold stratification on the Pipevine. I couldn't find info on it prior to trying to start them so just tried the first batch like other easy to grow things. I just took my Cleome's out the other day and have them in baggies waiting to see if they germinate. I'll throw the PV's in the fridge while I take out some milkweed.

Deb - Thanks for the heads up on the Pipevine. I just planted some seeds in my bog garden bed and will know why if they don't sprout. This is the very first time I have done a seed bed, so I am really excited to see what actually sprouts and grows. I'm like a kid in a candy store. Can't wait for my eyes to behold! :-) In my tray starts on my porch, I just started getting some sprouts after about 2 months. Apparently, some of those seeds like Moonflower need cold stratification. Though I did have some that sprouted right away. You just never know about some seeds. They can sprout quickly or take months. LOL!

Paige - I know the Cassia don't like a lot of water. Mine had some leaves turn yellow and drop. I figured out I was overwatering it. I always do that. I am so used to plants drying up in the summer and have to remember that they don't need as a much water in the cooler winter months.

I've done a couple group seed swaps over the past 3 months and got some great seeds. Since I am a newbie, I still don't know about a lot of plants available out there. There is a Victorian Mother's Day Swap going on that is shy 2-3 people before it closes out. I decided to get in on it. This is an easier one since you only have to send 10 seed packs. I can still use lots of seeds since the bog garden is so long ....... and empty. LOL! Thought I would mention this swap if anyone is still interested in more seeds for Spring. Here's the DG link: http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/693298/

Happy Sowing everyone! It's looking like Spring is coming quicky! (Actually, I think it is already here in my area. Not that I get freezing temps very often, but it has been cold off and on.) A number of my plants have burned leaves from the cold and will need to be pruned back as soon as I know there is no threat of a frost surprising me.

Becky, those Moonvine seeds germinate within a few days if you soak them overnight in water. I soak any seed that's round and hard. I'm sure that's what happened to my Cassia then. I'm hoping it's not dead and will recover. I know some use the Hydrogen Peroxide when they overwater but I don't know how much!?

Paige - I, too, would like to know more about the hydrogen peroxide method for seed starts. I had some Gladiolus bulbs that I stuck in a ziplock bag. Forgot about them for a week and then looked and saw mildew forming on them. Some were sprouting because of the moisture. So out of desperation, I got a small bowl and filled it half way with water and then just poured some HP into it. Dumped the bulbs in and let them soak in it for about 10 minutes. Took them all out and dried them with a paper towel and laid them out to air dry. Well, 2 days later, they are ALL sprouting! LOL! I need to get out into my yard to plant them. I just haven't had the time during the weekday when I am working. My plan though is for this weekend. I have quite a lot of seeds still to plant. I have refrained from trying to start too many plants in trays. I have discovered (for me personally) that if I just plant the seeds in the ground, they do much better. And actually that is even with plants that I purchase. I think the heat just wilts them if they are not already used to germinating in the hot sun. That's probably a zone issue for me since I am 9b or 10a. I think with the global warming, my zone is more 10 now than 9.

I have more seeds to plant in the so-called "bog" area, which is becoming more and more of a regular garden bed. No bogginess with all the compost and soil added. Raised it up and now it is dry. LOL! What's a gardener to do????

I was watering plants today, and was looking at the east side of my backyard and it looks like the start of a jungle. The west side which was only planted the middle of last year looks pretty sparse. But then I remembered that the east side looked like that the year after I planted everything. Now 2+ years later it's looking pretty good. The plants are really starting to kick out the growth!

There is a saying, but I don't remember the exact wording about plant growth. First year - looks dead, Second year - showing some signs of life and growth, and Third year - Look out! Growing like crazy! I wish I could find the exact wording. Anyone know????? I remembered seeing it here on DG somewhere in a post on a thread when I first joined back in September. I didn't post on that thread unfortunately. (Otherwise, I could trace it back.)

Anyway ..... Spring has arrived by all accounts in my area. Perfect weather for gardening! Unfortunately, I work during the hours of daylight. (Psst.... I did garden by moonlight on Sunday during the early evening! ☺ LOL)

Lol Becky, your bog is now bogless?

Paige, most Brugs are self sterile, so they have to be pollinated by a bee or human from another plant. If you get another, you may get seed pods. You know you want another one lol No one can have just 1 brug, it's like M&M's or chips.
I don't have a heating mat, hoping they will sprout anyway.
Putting that pop up was not an easy task, my poor DH was struggling to get those supports in it...but it's done. Hopefully I will get some seed in it this week. There's always so much to do in the spring....I'm not complaining....okay kind of lol.

I think spring is here too, things are coming up everywhere, it's an exciting time of year, isn't it?

Becky, is it the vine saying.....1st year they sleep.....2nd year they creep...?