6,340 Garden Web Discussions | Growing from Seed

When did you start sowing the seeds?

Wonderful job!! Your plants look Great!
I will be setting up like yours next year for sure!
Thanks so much for sharing!
Tonia

Wow, so that's what happened to mine last year... interesting!

Yea, I bought a couple of those mini-greenhouses this year - knowing better - and I still got burned. Three types of sunflowers, moon flowers (I. alba) and Scarlet-O'Hara morning glories. Only the moonflowers survived, the rest got infected with either cobweb mold or trichoderma (green mold)...didn't bother trying to save them, seeds were cheap.

Since then I've purchased this little ditty Pot Maker from burpee.com. So far, it's a pretty nifty little ditty... ;-p

Random trivia bits...

Cobweb Mold (Cladobotryum sp.)

Green Mold (Trichoderma)

Thanks - I've put the mimulus under lights in the garage where it is a few degrees cooler and they seem to like that a little more. Overnight almost all of them finally sprouted another leaf. I can't wait to put my plants outside but we just got another 2 inches of snow last night with below freezing temps forecasted every night until Saturday. I sure hope next week is a little more summery.
When you say "pinch" do you actually mean pinch or should I use scissors? It won't hurt the plant to squish it a little while pinching?

Lara

Lara, pinching works great if you have long fingernails, I usually use small little scissors when I pinch back ;)

Sharon

I started seeds yesterday (basil, parsley, thyme and chives) with my daughter and I just put them in the trays on the back deck with no cover (I just don't want to have to worry about removing it and my nights might be a little warmer than yours). They should germinate just fine. Like everyone said, be careful to take the top off when you start seeing germination or when the sun is shining. The humidity will cause the new plants to "damp off" which is so sad after you have gotten them to germinate and I cooked a ton of plants by not opening the top to my cold frame one morning (in February) when it was really sunny and warm.

My first year, I got about 50% germination and the second it improved to about 90%. It takes a season of mistakes to figure out what not to do!

Good luck.

Is this what happened to me? (I found this web site while searching for help with my fading seedlings.)

I swear I'm seriously considering never trying to start plants from seed again.

Last year, I moved into a new house. And although it has some nice, existing landscaping, a year or so left uninhabited (with only the lawns being mowed) left the garden a bit to be desired.

Soon after we moved in, I started a flat of some flower seeds. I think I ended up "cooking" them, as hinted at above. But I wasn't too bent out of shape, at the time, because we were overwhelmed with renovations and what not, and I just couldn't devote that much time or emotion to them.

But, several weeks ago, I decided to start some seeds that I really wanted in my garden (annuals I'd purchased from a nursery, last year). Being new to the whole "growing from seed" thing, I dutifully followed the instructions on the commercial flat kit. I played the role of protective mother, as best I could.

My tiny little darlings popped out sooner than expected (within just a few days of planting them). Still following the directions on the kit, I proppoed open the lid once the leaves sprouted. All seemed to be doing well.

On nice days (15-23C), I'd put the flat out in a partially sunny area during the day, then bring them in at night. I'd gently mist the flat if it looked like it was drying out.

Then, all of a sudden, the still tiny seedlings began to fade. One by one their stems would weaken, and I'd find them toppled over.

Right now, after having had a full tray of what I thought were healthy seedlings, I'm left with maybe 10% still looking viable. But I'm fully expecting them to die off, too.

It's really frustrating because I'd hoped to eventually build a small greenhouse and start all my plants myself. But with two spectacular failures, and seeing how much of my time goes into tending to the seedlings (even if they had survived), just paying the extra $1 for well-started plants from a nursery seems like a good deal to me now.

Anyone else having this much trouble getting even one plant to grow from seed?????

The bumblebees and other bugs (some wasp looking thing I've seen on the tomato flowers) seem to pick up a lot of the slack. I haven't had my usual huge crop of honeybees in my garden this year. I saw my first honeybee last weekend, and it was only the one bee, so I was concerned for plants that I don't usually see bumblebees on, thinking the honeybees would have been most necessary for those, but I've already got tomatoes, peppers and blueberries. I've seen mostly bumblebees in my squash and cucumber flowers, so I know those will be okay as well.

We still have bees here (we're out in the country a bit) but it doesn't seem like last year. I've been happy though to see some smaller native bees working alongside their bigger honeybee relatives.

Didn't do much good though. We've got a plum that was loaded with just beginning fruit, then a freak frost came along and destroyed them. :-(

Is all the above advice true for flower seeds as well? I'm looking at a whole bunch of flower seeds I bought up to three years ago and a never got around to planting. I'm trying to decide if I should scrap them and go out and buy new ones, or if I should give them a try. Any thoughts?

My experience is try them, they will probably germinate enough to make it worth while. I regularly use seed way out of date. Just sow it heavy (and probably have way too many).
Tom

I have a quick question in reference to seed planting. I recently purchased a package of creeping thyme seeds. I am planning on planting them in an area of my yard that gets good sunlight and water and drainage, but is over grown with weeds. grass just doesn't seem to take in that area. What would be my best bet for getting the area ready for seeding. thanks in central NJ

I thought this was a great idea although I haven't had time to try it yet.

Bonny

Here is a link that might be useful: instant beds