No, don't use a towel..get a coffee filter, easier to handle..and put your seeds in it. Drop the whole thing into a shallow dish like a custard cup and cover with water. Let them soak there until they show some white bits. I pour off the water the next day and pour fresh water over them, but I use the same filter. I've had some in a filter for a week or more, and they are still good to go. But they are no longer in water, just the damp filter. In that case it's like a damp towel. But I'd start them COVERED in water for more than a couple of days. I'm sure you'll have great success as I did, unless the seeds are old. And you will know in a couple of days, I promise you. I just noticed looking at that pot, the new leaves make it look like dragon flies hovering..and I have it with the most beautiful little day lily tuft. Even now they are gorgeous to me! Just get a well draining good potting soil. You can set them out in the ground if you want once they have rooted well, but pots are so much easier to control, imo.

Barb, Mg crosses can only occur between the same type of MG. Ipomea nil with Ipomea nil. etc. Emma could cross with another nil, but not with a japanese variety. so far I have never had a cross come out with any of my MG seeds that I have saved. On the other hand, I'm getting lots of them from trades and commercial purchases. I believe your white hige is a japanese variety, but grandpa otts, emmas gift and knoila black are all nil and they could cross pollinate. No worry, though. I've been growing emma's gift for 5 years. first year from seeds from emma herself and since then saved seeds. She comes true to seed every year and gives me tons of seeds, so will have plenty of seeds for trades, more than I could ever use in a 100 years. Last year I sent out 75 packets with 25 seeds in each one and still have a ton of them left over. No worry on knoila black either. I laugh when I see that one on ebay as "very rare". I don't know how it could be since it is such a huge seed producer. Each pod has 4-6 seeds in it and on mine, my friends and my neighbors, every flower turns into a seed pod. So far I have 40 seeds off one vine and lost count after counting 60 more pods on it. One vine will give you well over 200 seeds. granpa otts I've never grown, but from what I have heard it produces tons of seeds too. As for the number of new possible MG blooms, it will happen when the bees go from one plant to another, but it doesn't always happen and you have to collect seeds from that one pod, if it was crossed. And wind can do it as well. When I plant my MG on the fence, I keep a minimum of 2 feet from each vine, usually 3 feet and never put a nil next to a nil or a purpurea next to a purpurea. So far it's worked for me without any problems and I've been doing it for over 10 years. I also keep very careful eye on my vines and don't let them tangle with each other unless they are tangling with the same one. I have enough space between each vine that I can just put a tag in the ground for each vine and label it that way. Once I plant all my MG, I then make a map of the fence and mark where each vine is on the map, so if a tag goes traveling on me, and they are known to take many a walk in the mouth of a chipmunk, i can still know what each one is supposed to be. If it blooms something that it isn't supposed to be, I can change the tag to mark what it is on the map and not worry about the tag. My map isn't fancy, very simple as simple is much easier to deal with than big fancy stuff. The tape works great, masking tape and a sharpie works well, even better is fine pointed deco paint pen. if the sharpie print is in full sun it can and will fade on you. Fran

Thanks true-blue! I've been refraining from watering them lately. Unfortunately much of my patio gets watered each night by the sprinkler system. I think they're over-potted for the soil mix they're in, besides the limited sun. I think if i wanted to plant them directly into pots that large, it might have been wiser to start with a soil-less mix (at least that's what I've been picking up in the container gardening forums). But who knows? I can't undo what I've done so far, so for now I'm doing exactly as you suggested: I'm only watering them when they've completely dried out, and I'm giving them as much time as they want to get going. The only thing I might try beyond this is getting some sort of wick (even just a thin length of rolled-up paper towel) in through the drainage holes to help pull out more moisture. In the mean time I'm also hedging my bets. I've started germinating a couple new seeds at a time, and getting them going under artificial light indoors. If they get a really healthy start indoors, I hope to be able to acclimate them to the outdoor conditions later down the line. Originally my goal was a moderately lush border for my patio, but even if my morning glories become healthy, I don't have huge confidence they'll grow to be that lush. I've been thinking about what I might do further down the line, and I think I might try to focus on growing them in smaller pots the way you see in Japanese flower shows, and bordering my patio with another plant. In any case, thank you kindly for your encouragement, I definitely appreciate it! For me it seems like waiting is going to be the hardest part of gardening. Cheers, Nik

Ruth, Tell me, we 'Finally' get rain. I think everyone in the northern states got together and blew it down to us. . . lol Yes, the seeds will germinate easily in pods when wet. So, just pot them up and enjoy them over the winter. In fact, lots of folks, including Joseph, usually grow MGs over the winter. Ronnie, you too grow MGs during the winter months as well - don't you? GROWING MGS OVER THE WINTER would be a super great Thread for Joseph to start since he grows them 12 months of the year. . . lol This way we can have a winter MG growing party! Emma