6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed
Some times a seed will require a second cold period to germinate..... does require a soil temp 0f 65-70F & takes 114-60 days to germinate. Are you sure the seed was viable I also store the seed at 40F from harvest to ready to plant.
a paper bag etc will not increase the chances of germination.
I have good results with walls-o-water, which allow you to plant out a month or more early. Just have to wait for that one oddball warm day to plant and put on the wall-o-water. If you combine an early-type tomato with an early planting in a wall-o-water, you can have fresh maters pretty early. I have planted an early tomato in a large container with a wall o water for better results yet.
I only use them for eating tomatoes. It is not worth the effort for determinate plants that are used for canning.
Kay.
I'll add one other suggestion that may help as well. I find that if I continuously replant my tomoatoes (every couple of weeks) into larger pots, planting them deeper and deeper, they seem to grow faster as well.
I'll clip off the lower leaves (that would be buried anyways) and pot it up as deep as I can still leaving at least one or two sets of leaves exposed.
The buried stem then produces roots, allowing the plant to "grow up" faster...or so it seems.
I did this last year and I was clipping off blooms (I like to wait until they are planted outside to produce) weeks before I could plant them out.
If there is enough rain, mine will grown where they fall. But I wanted to see what kind of germination I would get, so I planted about 40 walnuts in regular soil with a bit of compost. I paid no attention to which end was up. No water. It was late fall. In the spring, 37 of them germinated. So my tip would be just make sure they are planted in reasonable soil and actually buried.
I think all those varieties would do better if winter sown. The datura might not depending on the variety. If it's one of the Metels I'd just soak it in water and sow it in soil somewhere warm. I'm not sure if any would do well with the baggie method of germination or not. If you have enough seed why don't you try a few different methods.
Thanks for the responses.
I did throw some in baggies, I will let them sit in the fridge for a week and then take them out for warm germ. I just have this urgent 'need' to see first year blooms, so I wanted to start early!:) I will also WS some.
Yes, the daturas are the metel kind - black current swirl, I did not sow those yet. Are they fast or slow germinating? Is it correct they are fast growers?
I got mine to sprout inside last year. Heres what i did:
Spread germination mix in a shallow container,sprinked the seed over the mix, and did not cover the seed up. Then i used a spray bottle to mist the seed and covered the top of the container with a piece of clear plastic to keep in moisture and humidity. Place them in a window where they will get plenty of sun, or under grow lights if you have them, and keep evenly moist. The temps I had inside where probably around 68 to 70 degrees. I didn't get them all to germinate this way, but i would say about half did. Good Luck!!!
Sarah
Have started the following seed the last two months
asparagus fern, gerbera, rosemary, cineraria, dracaena, campanula, cyclamen, begonia, crossandra, pansy, lavender,heuchera, aquilegia, exacum, eustoma, artichoke, cuphea, black eyed susan, gyposphila, impatiens gazania, crape myrtle,sagina, sempervivum, parsley, petunia, godetia, fuchsia, stock, armeria, dahlia, daisy (annual),
Starting next month (january) will realy start the seeds.
All are planed to be available for sale on 1 April.
What type of soil do people use for 'potting up'. I'm guessing a mixture heavy in peat makes it a lot easier to transfer?
Personally I don't like to use peat. While it is a nice light medium, it dries out too quickly for my liking.
Plus I don't care to contribute to the deterioration of a natural resource that take so long to produce.
I typically just use a premium potting mix.