6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed
I got seeds too for this season, luckily they germinated on me or these seeds are just easy to germinate no matter what?
I'm new to seed propagation, so i tried Coleus seeds indoors. The packet said, about 85% germinated. I got a seed flat of 72 cell packs, and I think I have about 100% of the seed germinated, some pack is so crowded. I am just amaze, it germinated in 10 days. I am just waiting if some of them will survive to become baby plant or die off on me. Most of them has just the first 2 green leafs.
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Surface sow (some light may be beneficial to germination), takes 2 - 3 weeks to germinate at 65F.
These are dwarf, you'll want them near the front with their short height, in sun. As with many alpine plants, they could be short lived perennials or could behave as annuals or biennials in your warmer humid climate but should self sow if you don't deadhead.
You could direct sow, I generally do with poppies - if you have a place prepared for the plants you could sow some now, or wait and put all of the seeds out in late winter/early Spring.....Fall or Spring is the suggested time for direct sowing - doing both may give you a longer succession of blooms.
INDEN... SOAK SEED IN ACID FOR 10-15 MIN THEN IN WATER FOR 1-2 DAYS THEN STORE AT 40f FOR 3 MONTHS..... LIGHTLY COVER THE SEED SOIL TEMP 57-78f TAKES 14 TO 35 DAYS TO GERMINATE MAY TAKE LONGER
kct ... SOAK IN ACID 2-4 HOURS THEN LIGHTLY COVER SEED SOIL TEMP 65-70f TAKING 30-90 DAYS TO GERMINATE
i USE BATTERY ACID
I've had success with Kentucky Coffee Tree germination by scarifying the seed coat with a Dremel. I planted 3 non-scarified and 3 Dremel scarified seeds and the 3 scarified seeds all germinated while none of the non-scarified ones did. This will be the first winter they go through, so we shall see if they make it!
Yes, the seed is fine and surface sown, covering the seed pots with plastic wrap and removing that at the first sign of germination is one way of keeping them moist until they can germinate.
A. chinensis comes up like lettuce and just about as fast for me, other types could take as long as 60 days or more to sprout.
I don't think you'd have trouble with the seed, but if you do or if you are looking for a specific variety and cannot find seed for it, buying about 1/3 the number of plants you need, dividing those when you get them home to plant them is another possibility.
Just came across your old post when searching for info on growing astilbe from seed... I am curious as to what you decided to do and what the area looks like now,a year and a half later.
I must say your honeysuckle seems to be the alien invasive Amur honeysuckle, an insidious shrub that unfortunately bordered the rear flowerbeds in my backyard when we moved here 3 years ago. This year I finally persuaded my neighbor to cut them all down, so I only should have to do battle (in my vegetable AND flower beds AND the lawn) for another few years with the germinating seeds pooped out by the birds from thousands of "yummy" red berries all over my 1.3 acres.
In addition to the 5-6 full-grown honeysuckles along the property line, there were about a dozen of these monsters on our property that the previous occupants had kept pruned back into low (4-6') bushes. I cut every single one to the ground and carefully painted each remaining stump-end with a good, strong shrub-killer (the only time in my 40+ years as an organic gardener I ever have resorted to an herbicide--just shows you how much I detest honeysuckle). I laboriously dug out half of them a month or so later, but found by waiting another year, the other roots gave me less of a battle as they had partially rotted.
I think you would have a much nicer little garden spot if you were to remove the honeysuckle and instead plant a nice little native tree such as a redbud or dogwood. This would still provide some dappled shade and any bulbs or perennials (or part-shade-tolerant annuals) would thrive as opposed to a few plants merely surviving, which is, I am certain, all you would have as things are.
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I think you will notice the difference in the amount of light more than anything. The light possible with your florescent lights is only about one tenth of the light available with the greenhouse. Your seedlings should be noticeably shorter with stronger stems. You should also provide a fan to assure good air movement in the greenhouse. Al
I have some lettuce seeds in a purchased seed starting mix w/o fertilizer. I'm wondering when to start fertilizing. Mandolls stated above that "The seeds themselves have enough food to get things rolling." My question is how long do the seeds' nutrients last? Thanks.
You don't give a clue where you live and garden. Starting lettuce in a packaged mix makes me think you are planning to grow to harvest in a container. If that is the case I would not fertilize until the shoots were about 2 inches high, and use a dissolved liquid about 9-3-6 which is about what the plant can use. Lettuce needs to grow fast with no check in the growth. You would get more response by starting your own post. Al
Thanks, Art.
I took the advice after see the following posted on a couple of hydroponic sites:
"Do I need to soak my Rapid Rooter plugs?
Answer: For optimal results soak Rapid Rooter plugs in pure water with a light blooming formula (200ppm or 0.4mS), then place back in tray and follow procedure for cuttings or sees. "
And then I used this online concentration calculator:
http://www.cleavebooks.co.uk/scol/ccconc.htm
Not sure if i got it right, but thankfully there must be a margin of error because my seedlings are thriving. It's been only four days, and the lettuce is just over a half-inch tall, and I can see the spinach seeds cracking open. One spinach is even showing green.
They may have suggested a "blooming formula" because it would be fairly high in phosphorous (aids in root development). But 200 ppm of phosphorous would probably require a couple of tablespoons per gallon when using a 0-5-4 formula. Also, of course, you'll have to start using some fertilizer that contains nitrogen or you will soon have yellow lettuce :-)
Good luck with your first time germinating seeds Kenny, looks like you're off to a good start. As I've mentioned I only grow flowers, but I love watching the miracle of seed germination.
Art
Yes I think that is the problem. Why do you have so little mix in your pots? These germinate so fast I think I would start a new batch. Al
I started another batch with soiless mix filled to the top. All of them (collards, bok choi, endive, escarole...etc) just started to develop the first true leaf, but one of the mustard green's cotyledon is still yellowish and dying. Its always the mustard greens looking very bad...?
I was going to plant fewer pots at first, but every one of the seeds germinated so I decided to plant them all but didn't made enough mix. So all the pots were half filled (2 inches deep)...I thought they would do OK until transplant.