Linda, Does this look familiar? I can understand how you feel at this point, being just a bit further north. Whenever the cold snaps retreat back to the north, we get that gulf stream air coming in and giving us rain and snow which is quite often. The excessive moisture can wreak havoc on the seeds and make them rot, but in most cases that won't happen. The only seed that has continually rotted on me with winter sowing it too early as compared to other winter sowers is Alcea (Hollyhocks). I know there have been others, but this one does it every time if I winter sow before late April. Many of your seeds will be quite fine if not all. A couple of things I've done in the last few years to compensate for the immense moisture we experience during the winter and sometimes straight into June is to place the containers under an eave on the southwest side of the house. Here they still get some moisture, but not as much as if they were directly out there as in the picture above. I also place some under our veranda and the stairs going up to the deck as under the deck, but my favourite is under the eave since they get more light. I also don't poke too many holes in the plastic covering the container. The following is a container just done last night and shoved out the door until I place it in it's spot later today. There are 6 cups in this basket. In the plastic on top there is one hole for aeration and precipitation for each cup. Just one for each. We don't need more than that with our rainfall and snowfall. A third thing I've done is discovered Premiere ProMix HP. The HP stands for high porosity. Although it retains it's moisture very well, it lets the excess go. This potting soil's vermiculite and perlite and stuff like that is much finer. I've found that it is a great product and does make a slight difference. How many holes do you place for drainage? I am very liberal with them and in an 8oz styro will place 5 along the bottom rim about minimum 1/4 inch wide. We've had at least 5 storms now which dumped 10cm and then turned to rain. In the last few hours we've had a nice snowfall which isn't stopping... But not to worry. Things reseed in the gardens every year, and so many will germinate in your containers I'm sure!!

Gail, I haven't started, but yes, all this snow is definitely getting me in the mood. I'm mostly "getting ready to get ready". I'm taking my second graduate course which will finish up next week, so that's been taking up a lot of my time. Plus we're renovating here in my house too (which means I lost my overwintering spot for my tubers). I still don't have my bulbs in the ground, and I don't think I want to do it in all this snow (be kinda like ice-fishing). So I'm probably going to start them all in pots. In the meantime, I'm clearing off my table to get ready to go through my seeds. I need to at least find the seeds I'm sowing for Solstice. My opened bag of Promix is sitting on the porch, getting frozen. I have to clear a spot in my kitchen and transfer the soil to a kitty-litter bucket to make for a kinder, gentler, CLEANER WSing experience :-) So...I don't think you can live vicariously thru me, but isn't it nice to have snow? I hope we have snow cover through the whole season--it's good for the plants already in the ground. Linda

Mine look fine as well. I dump horse manure on the plot after I'm done in the fall and till it in. Sometimes right after I'm done and sometimes like this year, right before I want to get started again. The area I planted my snow peas in was virgin soil a year ago. So it had some manure added then. it needed more this year. It did OK last summer, but not great. Deluge of rain didn't help. I don't fertilize any more during the growing season with most things, especially row crops like this that I seed with a seeder. They always do fine for me. I started making a cocktail a couple years ago in a 500 gallon tank for transplants. I'll make about 200 to 300 gallons at a time because it's heavy to pull around. I'll add whatever size bottle of fish emulsion (quart, I think), chelated iron (micronutrients needed per soil test, 8 or 10 ounces), a bottle of liquid NOG (natural organic growth, organic growth enhancer), and a handful of 20 mule team borax (for the boron) dissolved in water before adding. It's very weak compared to package instructions, but I believe it really works. In 2012, I put in pepper transplants and watered with this for several weeks. Then it got hot and I gave up on lots of things. Couple months later, I noticed red things in the weeds. Turned out my peppers grew larger than any I'd ever had and they were loaded with chiles that had dried on the bush. So I harvested them and was very happy. That year, I also had an overabundance of sweetpotatoes like I've never seen. Monsters! I water in the slips by hand after planting and used this concoction along with manure in the ground beforehand. Had to water 5 or 6 times I guess before the rain took over. But I blame this cocktail and great hot weather. Last summer was a washout. Didn't use my cocktail, so I still have it in the tank ready to stir up and get going again in a few weeks.

Annie, It's terrific that everything is going so well in your garden. I have been pre-sprouting corn for years and love it....I like knowing I'll have full rows 'cause I hate gaps in the beds. I space mine about a foot apart too, and after that the main battle is with the pesky raccoons. Most of my garden is done on square foot gardening type spacing, although I give tomato plants a little more room. I love pre-sprouting seeds and pre-sprout everything I can. I'll start the corn today. I've been waiting for the cold weather to pass and, with a hard frost here this morning, I'm glad I waited. Living in a low-lying river valley has its' advantages in summer, but it is not so great in the spring. I hope the last cold spell is done now so I can get on with the warm season plantings. Have a great week! Dawn