6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed

I definitely have garden envy of the West coast.

I guess I got the idea it was ephermal because of something I read before I planted. If I recall, I did cycle them in baggies. Slowly I threw out each seed as they rotted. In any case, both Lars and Claret are listed as Astrantia major, really not hybrids. The seed pack was Spring Ballet from Seymours. I think there was one last seed I gave up on in the end.

I am glad to find this post. I too winter sowed Astrantia in 2009 and got nothing, but I just realized (from my records) I kept the container over this last winter. Perhaps I should go check and see if there's anything showing up.
Northerner.

This may help:
http://www.backyardgardener.com/tm.html
http://www.tomclothier.hort.net
This should be the perfect time to start them.
Barbie

It is in July 2010 now, and I harvested some seeds from pink Gerbera Daisies which are living outdoors in the garden during warmer days and indoors in pots during winter for 3 years. They're known as annual, but when you keep them warm enough they grow like perennial and the flowers keep coming back! When they were transplanted outdoors they were popular among bumble bees and so I could get them pollinated and harvest seeds!

I found that not all the seeds from one head of flowers are ripe. Let the head dry on the stalk and become fluffy like that of dandelion puff-ball (not that fluffy though) and search for a bit stouter seeds around the petals. Ripe seeds are rare (maybe around 50th or 100th of total?) but are definitely there if pollinated. And maybe this is why flower shops keep telling us that growing daisy from seeds is near impossible and we'd better get flowers or whole plant from the shop.

Germination is really easy. I succeeded in germinating them in a pot filled with quality potting mix, kept moist by spraying water every day, placed by a sunny window, with room temperature around 70-74 F, within a week.

Hope there are more people who succeed in growing Gerbera Daisies from seeds!

- Ryu

I put them in water, because the seller germinating instructions said to keep in water for 24 hours, but I kept them for like 2 weeks changing water every day as i could not get to saw them quickly as i had no spare pots nor soil mix sand i did not want them to dry out again, but then 3 days no water change cause i forgot to change water and they now smell badly, not sure whether 1 or all 25 have this smell. I sprayed fungicide on them (is that ok to do or should i use bleach instead?), but they still smell. Do you think the (some of the) seed might still be good for germinating/sowing? Can I attempt to saw such stinky seed? I would saw them one seed per pot not to spread if any contamination occurs. How do I check for viability of the (smelling) seeds (Cedrus Libani)?

I mix a good mix of perlite, sand, wood chips bark (tiny) and two kinds of soil and mix well all that and saw all my seeds in it in separate pots for my own garden.

To my mind all of your seed is contaminated. I doubt any will sprout.

Some people soak their seeds overnight before planting, but 24 hours is the most you should leave them.
Next time put your seeds in a wet but not sopping coffee filter and put the seeds and filter in a baggie. For pete's sake when you know you are going to plant have your soil mix ready before you do anything with the seeds.

This is a very easy seed to sprout. Let it soak over night, put it in your starter mix, I set mine on top of the water heater and they (three out of five) grew beautifully. A couple of added notes: If you let them wind around wire they will break at the wire when they get woody and too tight. Also, if you break a piece off, just pop it in the gound and it too will grow, no special treatment. They don't really start taking off until it is really hot. They form very few seed pods (mine made two but one was on the vine that broke at the wire so it didn't develope). So, I got six seeds this year. But, I do have a plant inside, one that I just stuck in the dirt. It is very small, I move it in and out as weather permits. If the temps are at least 40 at night I let it stay out. The ones in the garden, I just don't know. I was hoping they will come back this year. Good luck, get the seeds, the plant won't do anything until it is hot anyway.

LauraNell

I have considered looking for seed in the fall, but I read on this site that rooting them in soil is supposed to be so easy. Is it??

Found this old thread and wondered if any of you are successfully growing this milkweed. I was able to get germination from seed, and my plant is now about 8-10" tall. The leaves at the bottom were starting to yellow, so I potted it up to a larger pot, but the leaves continue to turn yellow and then drop off.

I can't seem to find the right balance of water for it. If I let it get too dry, the leaves droop and then turn yellow. If I wait until it is dry down to about 2" the leaves still turn yellow and fall.

I am using Sta-Green potting soil. I want to grow it in a pot so I can bring it in to overwinter. I keep potting it up as the roots reach the bottom of the container. I've not let it get rootbound. Maybe the soil is too rich? The mix has some fertilizer in it, so I've not added any additional fertilizer to it because most milkweeds do fine without a fertilization program.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Susan

I think the problem I had previously was the seeds. I bought more seeds from Thailand 2 years ago and have had excellent results, even with the leftover seeds I sowed this season. I just pressed them into moist soil and covered the tray. They sprouted within 2 weeks.

I keep mine in pots and don't move them up much in size. I have blooming plants in 1 gal pots and will keep them in that size for about 3 years before moving them up. I let mine go kind of dormant over the winter so they haven't gotten huge. I assume if I moved them into large containers and allowed them to continue growing over the winter they get quite large.

Hi ree,
You may want to go over to the cactus and succulent forum and try doing a search. If you dont find your answeres, just post your question there.

Alot of people in that forum grow this plant.

Good luck,
JoJo

Once they sprout they need to be kept lightly moistened, not wet. I agree it sounds like you may have over-watered. Allow the surface of the soil to dry a bit before watering again. The amount of water needed decreases as they get bigger and they should get almost no water over the winter. Use a well draining mix but not sure about limestone sand. Try something neutral like sharp or builders sand or forget the sand and just use the perlite.

As trudi says the seed won't produce a plant that resembles the plant it came from. In most cases this is a hybridized plant. Many heirloom varieties do come true from seed.When planting seeds like you have is a crap shoot. 1 or 2 may be like the plant, but most will not. Some will produce berries and some may be useless. You just never realy know what you are going to get.

Just curious--why are you growing strawberries from seed. I think it would take a while to get viable plants. The best way to grow them is from stringers. You buy some plants and that fall they produce stringers which you cut off and replant the next spring

Oh, thanks guys.

Oilpainter - I bought one plant from the local nursery here and hopefully it will produce tons of runners later in the fall or winter for my propagation project. I decided to get some Sequoia Strawberry seeds online because I like seeing things sprout and mature, (For me, it's like getting a puppy or a grown dog). However, I do know that strawberry plants won't flower or fruit until the second year. I'm patience so I'll just enjoy the beauty of the plant for the first year.

I've flowers all year long from a package of mixed wildflower seed. Some are big, some are small. Some last a long time and some only open at sunrise and are gone by noon. However it is much easier than planning and you can be almost assured of some flowers of some sort when you want them. Oh, no sunflowers in the mix. I would think that the best chance of getting sunflowers when you need them, and the cheapest, is to use those little black sunflower seed found in bird food.

Right now, among others, I've a bright yellow something that will last as a cut flower for seven or eight days.

Where I am the annuals I grow by just sprinkling the seeds and letting them alone are: zinnias, cosmos, bachelor buttons, snapdragons, and calendula.

If you keep your plants low they will get more sunlight than if they are higher The eaves shade the top part of the window. They won't get as much sun as outside or in a greenhouse, but they should do fine. Moving them outside on nice days will help keep them from getting leggy.

I agree with keriann.

Some seeds should be direct sowed into the garden. Morning Glories, Nasturtiums and Sweet Peas are some of them. They can be planted early because a light frost won't kill them. To get them off to a good start Presoak your seeds so the outer cover softens and swells and is ready to pop open. Filling your hole with water and letting it soak into the ground before you plant, ensures that the seeds have enough moisture to grow

thanks! sorry about the late reply thought I'd give some feedback on what wound up happening. started many different kinds of morning glories most went outside but some. some of them went in a 10 gallon square pot with teepee like structure i had made out of bamboo poles so far the cardinal climbers have been the most sucessful having at least 2 flowers open any day. Picotee reds and blue have issues with their leaves and have yet to produce any flowers. MoonFlowers have great leaves but have yet to produce buds but they are only about 4 feet long by now and i understand they take a while. Have put them in front of a 10' tall south facing window with two hibiscus trees and they dont seem to be leggy at all.

I am considering doing the same sort of setup with some cypress vines any idea if that could work?

Funny you mentioned Grand Rapids... that's exactly what I bought. It was between that or the Simpson, and I went with the GR because it said it was more heat tolerant.

I actually did plant swiss chard this year (bright lights) and was suprised at my success. It is doing very well. Any suggestions on how to cook/ eat the stuff? lol. Should have thought of that before I guess.

Kim

The leaves of Chard can be substituted for Spinach in most recipes. You can boil it for 4 to 6 minutes and serve with butter or olive oil and salt and pepper or make a creamy cheese sauce to pour over it. It can be added to soups. You can just pour boiling water over them and then mix with a can of heated undiluted mushroom soup. Boil Chard stems separately until they are tender--They take longer than the leaves. and serve with holindaise sauce or I like them with Rene's Ceasar salad dressing