6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed
The seed pods will be where the flower was. It is an oblong pod with many tiny seeds inside. Wait until the pod turns brown and starts to open Then collect the pods in a container. If you do it before this you will get immature seed that won't sprout. Stick your thumbnail in the opening and peel it back. Do this over a piece of white paper so you catch the seed.
Hostas are easy to grow from seed and don't need cold stratification. I'm growing them from seed I harvested from my own plants a few years ago. They take a really long time to get any size to them. The ones I planted 6/20 last year went dormant in December but are back up again this year. They still only have about 3 leaves on them. They won't come true from seed--the ones I'm growing all came up green, even the seeds from variegated cultivars.
Oilpainter is right--it's faster to divide mature plants every couple of years to increase the number of plants you have to work with. You can also divide them into smaller segments. I've got smaller divisions planted around the base of an oak tree. They'll be small this year but slightly bigger next year. By the third year they should have grown to almost their mature size. I've got some gigundo designer hostas that need to be divided but I missed my window of opportunity this year.
I also winter sowed hosta seeds. They're tiny but they're up. Check out www.hostalibrary.org for instructions on how to grow them from seeds. I grew them indoors last summer by a sunny window. This year I winter sowed 2 different types of seeds--'Dream Weaver' & 'El Nino.'
Many people grow hosta from seed trying to see what variations in plants they can come up with...they don't come true to the parent plant. Takes some patience....germination may be anywhere from 15-90 days or so, and the plants stay small for the first 2-3 years.
Hostas are not bulbs. They have a root system extending downward from a crown, and quite an extensive one at that...One of the few times I've broken a shovel was lifting hosta to divide.
Have you visited Swallowtail Garden Seeds? They have a really good assortment of perennials. I went to the site for bellflowers and ended up with a whole lot more.
Here is a link that might be useful: Swallowtail
I've never been able to find seed pods on any of the hybrid rose of Sharon. My daughter has several mature bushes growing in her garden and they don't appear to set seed. The flowers just fall off the stems as soon as they're past their prime. The regular ROS have distinctive seed pods that are loaded with seeds. I harvested hundreds of them last fall. If anyone wants seeds, let me know!!! ;-p
Yeah, I thought the crate was really cute; there was another one that I didn't get a picture of that was in a galvanized tub that was cute. The cupcakes turned out well, too. We ended up bringing them all in and frosting them there at the site; much easier than trying to transport frosted cupcakes!
I don't know for sure but it sounds like you may have cucumber beetle around. The adult feeds on the leaves but the larva feeds on the roots. It would be worth a search to see if that's what it is and what to do about it. You can find photos and info on the web
If not the beetle it must be some melon feeder. Some burrow into the stem. Try cutting open one that is dieing where it is twisted and see if there's a larva there.
The cracking in the leaves is the result of what's going on below.
After a frost--Ty your germination rate is so poor. You probably got quite a few that were not ripe and the frost didn't help. Collect your seed before frost after the pods have turned brown. Let them dry for a few days inside, jar them and store in a cool dry place.
Do not sow them in a trench unless you want to do a lot of transplanting and any ditch will be burying them too deep. Broadcast them, rake in and water. Marigold seed has to be just covered with soil. Keep the area wet--but not too wet for a week and they should be up.
I start my pepper seeds that way. It works quite well.
Don't zip the bag closed. Place it is a warm, not hot place.
When the root grabs the paper towel (not that often), I simply take a pair of scissors and cut out a little chunk of paper towel around the seedling and plant paper towel and all.
I just lay the seeds on top of the towel, so I can see then through the plastic and check on them every day without disturbing them.
I have grown the yellow from seed and it took about two weeks. I sowed them in trays of peat, water regularly and place in full sun.
Here is a link that might be useful: my rustic bajan garden
One point about nurseries/garden centres which is certainly true over here, is that they will frequently get plants out on display far too early just to get the sales. You will see tender plants(in our climate) such as petunias and pelargoniums available long before it is safe to put them out in our gardens. They push the plants with fertilisers and light manipulation to get big flowering specimens to tempt the unknowledgable buyer. So don't worry too much about what nurseries are doing. Just try to get good healthy plants suitable for your own garden. They will make up the time if they are happy.
Flora UK
Petunias and peligoram Geraniums are not tender plants. Both will take a light frost.
The temperature of the soil is more important than the earliness. If the soil is cold few plants will grow well. Don't be afraid to put these out early if the soil is warm.
I find that big box stores and groceries tend to do that here, more than nurseries who grow their own plants
Keriann When I say cold, I'm talking 1-2 degrees celsius , which is about 35-36 fahrenheit. That's nighttime temps. Unusual for this time of year. If 45 F is warm enough, we've been barely above that most days. Now we're warming up.
So, I can gauge how long to harden off by what the marigolds are doing? I thought they needed at least 7 days.(?) Daytime temps will be 68+ . Won't the sun burn them if I don't do it really gradually?
Ah yes. Taking the plants for a walk.
I have a couple of raspberries in the house (they were in quarantine) and I've been taking them out for a walk for about a week, trying to get their delicate over-sized house plant leaves used to the sunshine.
My grape cuttings have finally been moved outside. I've got them on a cart so I can get them out of the sun after a couple of hours, so they don't get a sunburn. But they are dealing with the air temperatures quite well.
Pumpkins desperately need to be hardened off, but they hate being moved and their garden won't be ready for them for a couple more weeks, so I won't take them out for a walk until closer to time to plant them. They act like spoiled little brats, whining and drooping if they get moved.
Tomatoes need to go out, but I have to re-pot them first. It's June, for Pete's sake. When is it going to stop freezing at night?
Morz, they don't have a botanical name on the package, it just says Bellflower, Blue (Ferry-Morse). Directions say to sow directly in the ground after frost. I sowed in a tray though. What I really wanted was Campanula Portenschlagiana (Dalmatian Bellflower) but this probably isn't exactly the same, although the picture on the package looks very similar. I have a stone wall in my garden and was hoping to get them to self seed around in that area.
Thanks for replying.
Susan.
Thanks, oilpainter! I AM pretty exicted about this whole gardening thing. :) And out of frustration/too little space, I did snip the tops off of a couple before you told me not to. I was interested to see what happened. A few tiny leaves formed just under the cut, but are way slower to grow. Like you said, probably couldn't get anything from them this year. So off to the compost they go.
Sharvil, ha! An Armageddom thumb... have never heard that one!
Kim
Would anyone agree that this is good information ? It looks like bottom heat should not be necessary if I sow them outside right now based on our recent temperatures. It also looks like although the seeds are just a few millimeters the pod should open and the fruit will ripen and I'll have time to monitor the situation and hopefully collect the ripe fruit ?
I would really love to hear from anyone who has done this or seen it done.
Here is a link that might be useful: general palm germination information...
hi there...id advice you to take have a look at rarepamseeds.com,am sure you will gain the information you're seeking plus,its a whole community of palms seed,they do have cool tips on how to get 100% germination..
i did tried some technique and invented some of my own..they were successfull,,but some seeds might take few months while some might take 4-7 days to germinate eg christmas palm,very elegant,grows fast and easy to maintain...
i just started my blog and am gonna post few cool tips bout palm trees..feel free if you wanna share any tips or comment..
hope its helpful
Here is a link that might be useful: exotic palm trees