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| First time propagating Porchulaca & it's apparent I've sown the seeds too heavy.......... Soooo, do I try to thin them after they've grown a bit or pot them up as is? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by ken_adrian z5 (My Page) on Thu, Mar 14, 13 at 20:11
| portulaca??? as soon as you can move them w/o crushing them ... before the roots get so strangled you can pull them apart ... you dont say what size pot you are moving up to.. but 2 or 3 per pot ... might work fine .. ken |
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| What did you sow them into? In the past, I've prepared a plastic flat with a good, porous potting mix and moistened it well. Then, I've mixed those teensy seeds with an equal amount of corn meal or sand to facilitate even sowing. After sprinkling the whole surface with the seed/sand, water well with a misting/fogging nozzle, cover with plastic until seeds have germinated. In a few days your flat will look like a chocolate sheet cake with portulaca frosting. A good comparison, because the cake can be cut into many little pieces which can be placed like plugs into the garden or a basket. They will rapidly grow together to form a solid mat. I wouldn't attempt to separate them at all...just slice off sections large enough to handle. |
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| What did you sow them into? In the past, I've prepared a plastic flat with a good, porous potting mix and moistened it well. Then, I've mixed those teensy seeds with an equal amount of corn meal or sand to facilitate even sowing. After sprinkling the whole surface with the seed/sand, water well with a misting/fogging nozzle, cover with plastic until seeds have germinated. In a few days your flat will look like a chocolate sheet cake with portulaca frosting. A good comparison, because the cake can be cut into many little pieces which can be placed like plugs into the garden or a basket. They will rapidly grow together to form a solid mat. I wouldn't attempt to separate them at all...just slice off sections large enough to handle. |
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| That's it rhizo_1, I'm nominating both you & dig dirt (Dave) as mentors of the millenium! You're both a wealth of knowledge & have been very helpful to myself & so many others on GW! Sooo , prolly should have sowed them in flats, but alas, I used 72 cell inserts. If I'm following you, I should be able to pot up to a 36 cell & plant those out without separating anything...... The corn meal/sand thing sounds like the ticket...... P.S. I use ProMix BX for seed starting & Fufards Mix No. 52 for my larger containers......... |
This post was edited by cugal on Sat, Mar 16, 13 at 19:14
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| T humbs up on your choice of potting mixes. I've used the ProMix for a germinating mix, too. I'll bet that you like the Fafard. Yes to your question. Plant your little 72s into the larger cells....using the Fafards. I wouldn't do it until a decent root system has developed, allowing you to transplant very easily. Try not to smush when you replant. Use gentle watering to settle the plant and new soil together, rather than a bunch of tamping and squishing with your fingers I love portulaca. I haven't planted it in a long time but I don't know why. |
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| That's a useful technique, rhizo. Thanks for sharing it. |
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- Posted by railroader 6 (My Page) on Sat, May 10, 14 at 16:00
| Does Porchulaca need to be replanted each year? My grand mother had what she called moss, that came back each year. |
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- Posted by ken_adrian MI z5 (My Page) on Sat, May 10, 14 at 17:26
| start your own post next time RR portulaca .. is also called the moss rose ... they do reseed ... but they will not bloom until late summer.. as compared to buying a few cell packs and enjoying them now... the best of both worlds.. is to buy a few early .. then wait for the blitz later ... you can also harvest the seed and store for winter sowing ... of course.. the trick is knowing what they look like so you dont kill them.. before they flower late ... ken |
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| Planted moss rose between my roses probably 10 years ago. They come up every year so profusely, I have to thin out pails of them in part due to the fertilizer I use on the roses. Have an acre and find them in the garden, strawberry beds etc. Planted once, they will reseed for years in our area. Purchased two plants of the trailing portulaca this year for pots and they have dropped seed which is growing around the pots, but don't know if they will come up in Spring from seed. They are lovely trailing plants for hot sun. |
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