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What do you with all your WS seeds?

greengardener07

16 years ago

I know I can't possibly plant them all in my yard (at least not in one year). I will end up giving some away to friends and family and the rest (perennials anyway) will go into pots for next year.

How many WS plants do you really end up planting? Percent wise?

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Comments (8)

tiffy_z5_6_can
16 years ago
Oh gosh... I really don't know. There always seems to be room for quite a few, and this year there will be even more room since I lasagnaed three big sections on the property last fall. There's also still too much lawn and DH is really warming-up to the idea of taking out more of that green this year.

We moved here in 2001 and I've been wsing ever since. There is never a lack of space. I also have started to plant in drifts. The Joe Pye Weed which I winter sowed this year will be planted in a space that is 10+ feet by 5+ feet. There's lots in the containers, and if they all come up they will fill that space in quite nicely!

I do have a holding bed where things go at the end of the season if they haven't gone to friends, family, or otherwise. It's a good idea to have one.
LindaMA
16 years ago
That sounds like a great idea, a holding bed, I like that a lot and may try creating one this spring. I know I'm going to have a lot more seedlings then I have space to plant them. I'm hoping to give some away to my neighbors, that way I'll get to see them grow!

We had so much rain and wind this weekend that a couple of my containers blew half way around my yard. I'll be so suprised if I see Verbascum seedlings this year, as they were in the milk jug that blew up against the fence and fell to the ground top first.
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I agree with Trudi,they don't sprout if they are infertile or immature. I had this experience with a few containers last year,I know that is the problem with them, because I held seed back and obtained more and compared the seeds.:) The biggest culprit for me last year was shallow soil and a bad mix of soil. The containers that had the mix I made didn't do too well,I used peat and perlite. I will not do that again,apparently that isn't something I am good at! :) 3 inches is a number to stick to,I am going to do 4 inches for my perennials this year just to be safe! ;) Of course some things like alyssum don't need the deep soil,but it seems the majority does. The containers I used didnt seem to effect germination,except colored pop bottles,it seemed there was slow germination and the plants didnt grow so fast in them,after being planted in the ground the plants took off,so I am assuming it was the colored bottles. Maybe they give the illusion of too much shade? Filter out important rays? I am not sure,but they are off the containers to save list for me! I used a variety of containers last year. Being my first year,I wanted to experience as much as I could and fast...lol..Germination was not an issue in the rest of the containers I used,it was the convenience of removing the plants that came into play in determining what I will use again.Milk Jugs ,clear pop/water bottles (2 liter and smaller),Ice Cream tubs, the top of cake dishes from the grocery store(these are awesome over pots),and kitty litter containers,are all ones I will use again for sure!:)
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I planted a few silene and a few stokes asters but most of them are still in the containers. I must have about 50 silene seedlings but they're under a half inch tall. They're not growing at all. The ones I planted last week look ok so I think I'll just put them in the ground somewhere and see if they start growing. My paw paw seeds never sprouted but maybe they still will. My lettuce and other greens are embarrassing. They sprouted but they're not really growing. My dad has given me a couple gallon ziplock bags of lettuce he got from his garden. Next time I'll try them in the gound instead of containers. I planted two each of five different kinds of cherry tomatoes a week or two ago and still have the rest to put out. I have sunflowers to direct sow too Bonnie. I see some sunny days in the forecast so I will try to do that this weekend sometime. Melons as well.
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just1morehosta
16 years ago
Hey Tiffy,

What kind of Joe Pye Weed do you plant?

Carol
carrie630
16 years ago
My husband just built me a 36 ft x 13 ft rectangular shaped, fenced in area that was going to be a huge veggie garden. Well, I knew that I wouldn't need all that space, so now I am planting out my second year blooming perennials into the holding bed. I also thought I would throw in some other flowers that will bloom this year, and later transplant them into my borders.

Holding beds... "it's a good thing"

Carrie
tiffy_z5_6_can
16 years ago
Carol,

I think it's Pupurea Maculatum - nice dark green with purple hued leaves and old rose/purplish flower heads that are HUGE. The plants grew to 6 feet last year. They were winter sown just a couple of years ago. I had received the seeds from a trade.

I have others in the gardens, but this is the one I'm concentrating on this year. The butterflies, bees, and beneficial wasps just love it.
shimla
16 years ago
I use a holding bed also, it's wonderful if you have the space. It's almost full this year so I'm a little panicky about what I'm in store for this spring.

I usually have no idea (except for a few annuals) about where I'm going to plant everything. I do hundreds of pots so it's not an easy task to plan. The minute the weather warms up, I make it my goal to get my pots emptied out of the yard. So, I plant into my holding bed. I plant them really, really close together in strips and tag them. It has it's advantages a) cleans up the yard b) they grow faster in the ground and c) watering is a breeze.

Then, I eyeball an area I want to plant. I go back to my holding bed and pick out what I want from there. It's a heck of a lot easier for me than going from pot to pot.

It always seems like I need plants, no matter how many I sow. Not all of my containers will germinate. Sometimes, I'll lose something over the winter so a vacancy will appear. Other times, it's just time for a change! It's nice to have last years perennials in the holding bed, all ready to go and bloom :). It's like having my own nursery. I also give away things. It's always nice to send something home with someone. If you have any local gardening clubs, plant exchanges are great.
lindakimy
16 years ago
I plant pretty much all of 'em. But I have a very large garden. Dh just broke ground on a new bed for me this evening. And I'll be enlarging the oldest bed out front next weekend if all goes well.

I had 5 2-liter containers left after last year's sowing. Bellflower - which did nothing. Delphinium...what was I thinking? And river oats that I feared would go rampant so I didn't find them a home. Other than that...everything went in the ground!
Lcgrace Mahoney
16 years ago
So, almost all of your winter sown plants and flowers survive? I've been thinking about this same question. I've got 40 containers outside and am thrilled! I can't wait to do more.

My area of improvement for this year will be getting the hos's from the jugs into the ground and having them survive.

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