6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed
You should get the bag out of the sun. You risk baking your seedlings as soon as they emerge. Keep them in the shade until they germinate. As soon as you see germination, take the bag off.
As for #3, I prefer to keep it moist the whole time during germination (the bag should do that for you). Once they germinate, however, yes, I strongly recommend only watering when the soil feels almost dry. If you keep it constantly moist, not only do you make it easier for diseases to get established, but your plants won't build as good of a root system.
Hi
I have tried a couple of years to get both the datura and the angel trumpets to germinate. This year I just got 3 lavender datura's threw winter sowing and one single white angel trumpet indoors. I will see how these grow this year. I did my ws between 12/21 and 1/6 this year and this just germinated 5/3. The one that germinated indoors i think was just luck. I only got one and I have single and double bloom seeds.
Linda
Linda
Hi Fran:
I've had pretty good luck starting brugs from seed. I just soak the seed over night in hot water, then remove the cork like outer layer, revealing the seed inside. I use soil less seed starting mix, plant, barely cover and keep moist (usually seal inside a baggie). I've used bottom heat and found that's a big help. It does take a little patience, my recent brug plantings took a month to germinate.
I will mention though, I'm using fresh seed-that may make a difference. Hope this helps! If all else fails, you can always post on the seed exchange forum that you are looking for brug cuttings...there are usually lots of friendly gardeners willing to share cuttings-and they root super easy just in water.
Wishing you the best of luck!
I just store my leftovers in a drawer. They generally seem to do fine. Older can have slower germination times, lower germination rates, or other effects (like chlorotic seed leaves). However, in general, they'll do just fine for a couple years after the purchase year.
I don't know what freezing them would do. You could try it, but I wouldn't try it with all of my seeds...
Hi again, Patsi.
:)
Yes, My Folia can seem really complicated at first. It takes a while to get the hang of it, but I do like it better than Blotanical as that site has ratings and can quickly turn into a popularity contest.
If You click My Folia, then, at the top of the page click on plants.
As you can see, on that page there is a 'search' box at the top of the page where you can type in what plant (or variety) you want to see if someone is growing.
So, if you click 'tomatoes', you can see that there are (at this particular moment), 281 different varieties being grown by My Folia's members.
And no...I have no connection to the site other than being a member and enjoying using it. ;)
I DO understand what you're looking for though - you want a list of everything everyone is growing, variety, start date, germ date, transplant date, yield, etc. - but I don't think you'll find too many people who have that kind of discipline, and it's usually associated with hand written journals. I keep one online, just to be able to look back on the year before and see if I can improve on something or give the plant better conditions, and it's much easier with labels I can click or using the 'search function rather than trying to flip through hundreds of pages of hand written notes.
Why not give My Folia a try? You might find you like it more than you thought you would, and heck - it's free. Maybe you could get hubby to put in his plants that way?
:)
If you are seeing green, I'd say plant them, skip the dark refrigerator - they are going to need light.
A seed is hypogeal when the cotyledons (green seed leaves) of the seed remain inside the seed - normally a hypogeal lily seed will produce a root (radical) during the first warm period, need to experience a chill before the cotyledons emerge in the second warm period.
I often start lily seeds and there is nothing unusual about the seedlings or the germination. The only reason I don't do more from seed is because it is so slow to grow to blooming size. Starting from scales is easier, faster and more sure. Al
I've transplanted numerous seedlings and even nursery-grown plants that had mold on top w/o a problem, I typically just take as much of the affected soil off the top during transplanting as possible. If the plants are healthy, I'd plant them. If the plants look sickly, I'd toss them.
Thanks tripsleb. You're right, I do. They're getting little root blisters, so I know I have to go deeper. I didn't realize I can pinch off the lower leaves and go really deep until I was researching this issue last night. I'll be doing that this weekend, and then putting them into their full-size containers. It's still a bit early here (NJ), but I can pull them into the garage at night if I need to.
Thank you!
Oh, Karen, we posted at the same time! It's going to be dreary here for the next few days, so keeping them out of the sun should be no problem :-)
Thanks for all the extra info. I'm writing it in my notebook right now! And yes, they're going into good-sized pots this weekend. I'm not supposed to have them out permanently until after Mother's Day, but with the pots, I can bring them when I need to.
Melissa
Zahzeen, we'd be outside playing all day during summer.
We'd hear the tinkling bells of the truck, run inside to quickly gather up our change and run back out to get ice cream for 10 cents...LOL. My mother would be yelling "You're going to ruin your dinner!" because the truck always came around 5 PM.
My father didn't get home for dinner until after 7 PM anyway...and we weren't allowed to leave the table until we cleaned our plates.
You brought up a great memory!
Yes remove the tent and heat. When the seedlings show signs that water is needed, immerse the container half way up the sides into a bath of 50% diluted fertilizer water. When the surface shows the water presence by looking shiny take the container out of the bath. Do not water again until the surface looks dry. When the seedlings have at least one set of true leaves they may be separated into each his own pot of potting soil or planting mix. Al