6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed
I have to restrain myself. I get really good germination, so I end up with a lot of plants. I really have to figure how many I can use, and how many I can realistically give away. I'm also limited by my indoor space. I have a nice set-up - I can fit 12 standard nursery flats under lights - but some things (like tomatoes and peppers) benefit from being potted up to bigger containers, so I have to plan for that.
Short answer - I leave a lot of seeds unplanted.
I started pelleted wave petunias (tidal wave, shock wave and easy wave) in peat pellets about a month ago. This was my first time ever growing from seed and I'm happy to say that out of 80 pelleted seeds I have had 71 germinate into tiny little petunias. I had them under a fluorescent light in my spare bedroom but they began to get a little mold on top of the soil and didn't seem to be growing. About a week ago I moved them onto the kitchen table, gently scraped the mold off the top and exposed them to natural sunlight through the window with a ceiling fan running 24/7. The mold problem is gone and they seem to be growing really fast now but I just noticed today they seem to be getting a little "pale" looking. Do they need more light? Should I start to fertilize them (which I have not done to this point)? They have their first set of "true leaves" now. Any suggestions would be truly appreciated. I am having a blast caring for them and I want to be successful. My husband calls me "The Crazy Flower Lady" because I talk to them and tell them "grow little babies grow!"..., not to mention that I fill every available space in my yard with flowers... They make me happy!! :)
I usually sale my plants....tomato's geranium's, petunia ect... right around our last frost date.
I have sold at garage sales. Set up tables at my house & friends houses....who have lots of walking traffic.
Depending on the size of plant, I charged $1.50 to 2.50 a plant. I have been doing this for a few years now.I have people stop at my house & ask when I'm going to start my sale :)
Good luck to you!
Thank you for the info, I too dont really need to make a lot of money off of them, i had all the seeds I just bought more cups and potting soil to put them in but that doesnt equal to that much. I guess I will ditch the organic labels I will however still call the heirlooms out cause I can, lol. I was also thinking along the lines of 2 bucks a plant. Your may 2 date seems so early but you have a earlier last frost date i suppose being all the way down there. Im thinking im going to take the largest part of the plants on may 15. I am hoping that that will be a good in between date, a lot of people do mothers day here but that really usually ends up being too early, memorial day is usually the sure bet.
I don't know for sure as I have never grown flax, but some seeds require freezing to germinate well. Snapdragon is one like that. It may also be that it likes to germinate at cooler temperatures. If Flax comes back from self seeding and not from starting saved seed in warmer weather or inside, it just may be one like that.
The best way to do it is just like the plant would do naturally, so yes try planting it in the fall and see what happens
Ok, since you say 'dry' in quotes like that, I assume you mean...not dry? Just comparatively drier than the outer cells? Assuming you started with seed starting mix that you thoroughly wet and then squeezed the excess water out of before filling the cells.
I've always had really good luck starting peppers (nearly 100% germination). I use a heat mat and a humidity dome, but I always prop the dome open a bit to let air circulate. I keep them dark until the first seeds begin to germinate, then I take them off the heat mat and put them under lights. It can take a while for stragglers to catch up, so be patient. I had one variety (Yolo Wonder, I think) take almost double the time of the others I planted. But even they eventually sprouted.
Hi Kim ;-)
I also grew mine indoors (and they do get a little leggy,even when touching the lights),I have never winter sowed them (I might try that next year), but I think the only difference between yours and mine is ,I put mine in the garden a couple of weeks ago, and you are still waiting for "the perfect time" to set them out,but if what these other guys are telling you is correct,PLANT THEM OUTSIDE NOW ;-)
I've grown the kind you get from the grocery store, the green and gold varieties. They are easy to grow but I gave all of them away after the first year since they aren't cold hardy and have no idea how they did afterwards. I don't know if the cold hardy varieties are as easy to grow from seed or if they need a chilling period. You need both male and female plants for fruit production.
I just cleaned the pulp from the seeds and pressed them into moist potting mix. I covered the pot and kept it warm. The seeds germinated fairly quickly. I transplanted to individual pots when they had a couple sets of true leaves.
thanks for the responses, I know that they didn't touch the lights because I keep them at 3" to 4" above them, the only thing I'm thinking is that I left the fan on for too long on one day after I water them and the temperature was at 55? I only have 4 of this seedlings with the leaf problem out of the 24 I have growing. I just don't want it to spread if is some kind of virus.
I'm a lurker in this forum but I thought I'd introduce myself. I'm Anissa, 33, from MN. This is my second year gardening and growing from seed. I'm using a light set up in my basement as well as wintersowing lots of stuff on my deck. I'm growing annuals, perennials, vegetables, herbs. I currently have more seedlings than I will have room to plant in my little yard. I can't walk past a seed rack without buying something.
I've learned so much from this forum (as well as others) so thank you everyone for all the helpful advice!
Have you had these outside? It looks like the leaves are burnt. Did you get water on the leaves outside in the sun--that will burn them? Are your lights too close? I think it's more an environmental problem than anything else
They haven't been outside at all - they've been inside under the lights. At first I thought maybe the tall one got too close to the lights (darn thing has been growing like crazy lately) but some of the lower leafs on the plant are showing the same yellowing as are some of the smaller plants (not pictured) that are probably 3" away from the lights. So I don't think it's the lights burning it, but I could be wrong. I dont think I've given any of the tomato plants fertilizer so I dont think that would be it. Any other ideas?
-t