My Germination is getting off to a slow start?

11 years ago

This has been the warmest winter, yet my containers have very little sprouts? Usually, my Nigella, Hollyhocks, coreopsis are a considerable size in March. This has been the slowest germ for me. How is everyone doing?

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caryltoo Z7/SE PA
11 years ago
Ladyrose, where in NJ are you. I'm southwest of Philly and I don't think this has been a particularly warm winter, certainly not compared to last year. My germination is also slow, only a few kale and lettuce sprouts so far, and last year by this time I had a jungle out there thanks to a Jan. and Feb. with temps quite often in the 50s. Haven't had much of that this season so I'm not surprised there are so few sprouts. Before the last two years it was usually late March and more often early April that I really started seeing sprouts.

That said, it's supposed to warm up into the 50s most of this week, so maybe that will get some things going. Yesterday I checked my beds and none of the perennials, even the early ones like hollyhock and lupine, have done anything yet. Only thing out are the crocuses.

Caryl
ryseryse_2004
11 years ago
Better a slow start than a quick start with a killing freeze!
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ladyrose65
Original Author
11 years ago
Caryltoo, you are right, my containers are still very stiff and cold. My Lillies are coming up?

Ryse, that is what happened to my first sprouts, when I first put my jugs out. They got bammed!
terrene
11 years ago
You have sprouts?? I am jealous. I can't even see my containers, they are buried in snow. :-/
emcd124
11 years ago
I have been feeling impatient too, and I"m in Z5 northern indiana. I just like the reassurance of "ahhh, it worked" every year when I start to see green.
caryltoo Z7/SE PA
11 years ago
emcd, I know how you feel. It's like a little miracle every year. In the last five days I've had some strawflowers, quinoa and one cosmos sprout join the kale and lettuce.

Let the green wave begin. :)

Caryl
pghgardengirl
11 years ago
Mine are still frozen, though the snow finally melted this week....never fear, more snow to come tomorrow...LOL It is still way too cold for germination here. I am SW PA.
ponyexpress_1
11 years ago
Has anyone kept a journal on when everything has sprouted? I decided to start one. This way I would know if I need to re-seed if something fails after a certain point. So far, in my zone 6a containers I have Lettuce mix, Gazania, Lupine, Collards, Broccoli and Achillea.
jensyen ( z7 MD )
11 years ago
Here is what has sprouted for me in zone 7. Planted last two weeks of January. Several germinated 2 weeks ago. Five different snapdragons, Pink Sea Thrift, Statice, Sweet William, Violas, Several different Gaillardia, Speedwell, Meadow Rue, Coreopsis, Penstemon, Venus Looking Glass, Love-in-a-Mist, Lavender, Veronica, and Rudbeckia. I am still planting containers. Hopefuly we will have a few more weeks of freezing temperatures at night. Maybe even some snow.
thenightingale
11 years ago
I like ponyexpress' journal idea. Nothing has popped yet here (central Ohio), but I'm not worried...they'll come when they are ready! Besides, we had snow just last week and are expecting another wintry mess this weekend.
emcd124
11 years ago
Wheee! We have our first sprouts. The containers of mesculun lettuce that we WSed for my son's preschool sprouted in the middle of last week. The kids were fascinated and thrilled.

I think it may have sprouted early because they were saved from my WS projects last year, so I have been casually selecting for seeds that germinate well under WS conditions.

I cant wait to see some action in my home containers now!
ladyrose65
Original Author
11 years ago
It's snowing here!
ishareflowers {Lisa}
11 years ago
I had my first sprouts show up this morning. It's a little earlier than usual but I do have them in an unheated greenhouse. I will start heating tonight because I noticed the seeds all plumping up.

The green wave is coming.

Lisa
ladygladys
11 years ago
I have hollyhock, clarkia and alyssum sprouts! Happy dance time!
ladyrose65
Original Author
11 years ago
Finally some official sprouts, Hollyhocks, Blue Boy Bachelor's Button, Dill, and Cherry Brand Rudbeckia's.
Edie
11 years ago
I keep a spreadsheet of my sowing and sprout dates every year. Until planting out gets crazy, I log planting out dates too. I highly recommend some form of written record, whether on the computer or in a paper notebook.

Regarding germination, I've had sprouts this early before.
For me the earliest sprouters have been alyssum, bachelor buttons, calendula, lupine, rose campion, and salad mix. I just sowed the BB's and haven't sown any of the other early birds yet, so I don't expect sprouts yet. I keep sowing right through April and into early May. Plenty of time for sprouts. I start begonia seed indoors for my really early sprout fix. Since I'm not fussing over all those wintersown seeds, I can coddle a few begonias.

Bonus: Having that record means my containers get labeled super fast. I went nuts with labels and photos my first year. I've now streamlined the labeling process. I number them in order as I sow them. No names on the containers, no loose tags inside. Just a number written in paint marker in several places on the bottom half. The number and the details are logged in the spreadsheet. I always know how many containers I have sown by checking the highest number. I can see what's sown without going out in the snow. And I can easily cross out a number or add a digit to re-use containers for spring sowing.
girlcat36
11 years ago
Things are off to a slow start for me this year. Last year at this time most of my jugs had some sprouts. As of now, I have 5 jugs that have sprouts, and they there are not very many sprouts in those jugs! So far bachelor's buttons, larkspur, and ammi have sprouted.

I am suprised that the lupine, hollyhocks, and Brazilian verbena have not sprouted!

It has been much colder around here than it was last winter.
caryltoo Z7/SE PA
11 years ago
I've also been surprised that neither the lupine nor hollyhocks have sprouted, but as girlcat noted it has been colder this winter. The ones in the garden have not poked through either.

Right now I'm a bit worried about the things that have sprouted -- we got a frost last night and I did not cover since I hadn't checked the weather and wasn't expecting it. I'm hoping that since they decided to sprout despite no really warm days -- nothing above the 50s -- they'll be OK.

The things that have sprouted have surprised me, and most are new to me like strawflowers and quinoa. The leaf lettuce has come up, too, but not the broccoli, which is making me wonder if the broccoli seeds were still good. They're usually among the early sprouters.

Caryl
girlcat36
11 years ago
I just checked my notes from last year....my hollyhocks sprouted Feb. 27th, and the lupines on March 3rd. At this time last year, nearly every jug had sprouts.

I had a few more bachelor's buttons sprout up today. It's still pretty cold and we had snow flurries.
ladygladys
11 years ago
Some more sprouts today!
Yarrow Summer Berries
Rosie O Day Alyssum
Shirley Poppy
Flanders Poppy
Peony Poppy

I tell ya Clarkia Elegans must really like the cold because those seedlings are bigger than the hollyhock ones right now and have the most germination.
ponyexpress_1
11 years ago
Not too many more sprouts yet. It's been cold at night. I did get a monkshood to sprout. I'm so excited about that! Mahogany midget coreopsis, cabbage and night phlox too.
ladygladys
11 years ago
Some more sprouts today:
Oriental Poppy
Livingstone Daisy
Thyme-herbal
Painted Daisy
ladyrose65
Original Author
11 years ago
The Green Wave has finally arrived. I got Coreopsis (you all know is my favorite!), HH's, Bachelor's Button, Maltese Cross, Anise, Fennel, Lovage, Cherry Brand Rudbeckias, and today I noticed Nigella Sprouts.

Still very cold after 3:00 p.m.
ponyexpress_1
11 years ago
I find it interesting that some zone 5 is getting more sprouts than some zone 6. I guess it just depends on the weather pattern. We are still cold here in the Western New York/ Buffalo area. At night especially. Warmer weather supposedly soon. I'm ready for it!
vajeff
11 years ago
I'm beginning to wonder if mine will ever sprout. Last year, they sprouted within weeks of being planted. This year, it's been over a month and the majority haven't sprouted.

So far, a couple of agastache, cherry bells, hollyhocks, liatris, ligularia (a single sprout), crown daisy, rudbeckia, echinacea, and a few more that I can't remember. Most of those that did sprout only have a few sprouts out of many seeds, so I'm beginning to wonder if this new potting mix (Black Gold) is ruining the germination. Might have to switch back to MG next year.
caryltoo Z7/SE PA
11 years ago
Is it colder than last year where you are? It is here and while a number of things are up a whole bunch still aren't and I used MG.

I've got strawflowers, marigolds, quinoa, fennel, dill and a couple of other things sprouting, but so far only one tomato. Oddly, it's florida pink while the anna russian is holding out. Guess the naming doesn't mean all that much as far as weather preferences. :)
tempusflits
11 years ago
So far all that is up here are bachelor's buttons and chamomile. Last time I WSed I had sprouts by March 10th. Still, it's been cold here, and a week ago Sunday we had five inches of snow. But they say the warm up is starting now. I'm expected good things soon. Fingers crossed.
moonwolf_gw
11 years ago
I checked my containers last week and I have Common Thyme, Sweet Williams, and Chamomile sprouting so far.

Brad AKA Moonwolf
daisydawnny
11 years ago
I know better than to doubt winter sowing.....I checked my jugs, still no sprouts. In years past I always had some sprouting jugs at this time of year. Makes me wonder how far behind the plants will be.....I have to admit, in a moment of disappointment as I was checking the jugs, I did ask my DH.... What if none of them sprout this year???
caryltoo Z7/SE PA
11 years ago
I know how you feel daisydawn. I have sprouts, but only one tiny tomato sprout so far, and though I've never had total failure of tomatoes in years of ws, I still can't help but worry. I have a feeling it's not unusual to not have tomato sprouts by now, but last year, because of the abnormally warm winter, everything was up by now. And since that's my most recent comparison, it puts those little doubts in there.

I also wonder how much the lack of sun has affected everything. Not sure where you are, but here we had a very wet, overcast winter.
molanic
11 years ago
I was just checking today and out of 75 containers only one has sprouts... wild lupine. Most years I had my containers in a sunny location. Last year's freaky near 90 degree March heat wave caused everything to germinate so early and cook in the heat... then get nipped or killed by the following freezing weather

In response this year I put many of my containers in morning sun only to prevent early germination. So of course this spring has been very cool so far and I have no germination. I got antsy and just moved a bunch of my containers back into sun today. I hope I don't regret it!
daisydawnny
11 years ago
caryltoo....I am in upstate NY. And yes, we have not had much sunshine either. What a long dreary winter. I did find sprouts of Kale and Virginia Sweets Tomatoes....no perennials or annuals yet. Hope the sunshine today wakes some seeds up!
lizbest1
11 years ago
Noticed a few of my containers had teeny tiny leaves today! Sowed 235 containers of hardy perennials, so far have seen tiny signs of growth in 6. Didn't open them up to see which ones yet, trying to get them all watered....
docmom_gw
11 years ago
We are all witnessing the beauty of wintersowing. The seeds know when the weather has reached their specifications. The variables involved are innumerable. Some seeds respond to day length. Some respond to temperature. Some respond to cold stratification time. Some need alternating warm and cold. And each yard or garden has a different microclimate. Containers set on a sunny paved surface will sprout much sooner than mine, which are on a thick layer of leaves and largely shaded by evergreens. The pavement will absorb warmth from the sun and continue to keep the containers quite a bit warmer well into the night. Fortunately, we don't have to keep track of all the variables, because the seeds will generally take care of themselves. I don't have any sprouts outdoors, yet, but I have started some coleus seedlings inside that are keeping me happy. I wish I had more light space to start more tender annuals, but it's probably better that I don't. I'd end up with way more than I can handle. Everyone hang in there.

Martha
bakemom_gw
11 years ago
mine are late here in columbus, ohio. only 2 jugs so far - poppies and dianthus.
kirchren
11 years ago
I was beginning to think I'm the only one, so I'm happy to read I am not the only one fretting over my jugs this year. I have 3 little tiny lettuce sprouts and nothing else. It has been abnormally cold here. On average at least 15 degrees lower than normal temps. I'm going to have to find some way to keep the faith. They've always come up in the past, so they will this year. I have to keep telling myself that. Again and again. Come on little tomatoes- show yourselves!!
jlee160
11 years ago
I only have 3 so far as well. Bombast poppy, prunella, and dusky salmon lychins. Trying to refrain from multiple checks per day....
jlee160
11 years ago
I only have 3 so far as well. Bombast poppy, prunella, and dusky salmon lychins. Trying to refrain from multiple checks per day....
terrene
11 years ago
I have ZERO Ws sprouts this year so far. I have been wsing since 2007-2008 and this is the slowest year yet!

But, if I had sowed Lupines or sweet alyssum or Rudbeckia, or one of your typical early sprouters,, they probably would have sprouted by now. Sowed a lot of trees and shrubs, no early sprouters so far!

Just sowed the Alyssum and a bunch of other annuals yesterday.
ponyexpress_1
11 years ago
Well, a few days of nice weather and I am starting to see quite a few containers with seedlings. I'm guessing about 25 sprouted. Mostly perennials, but a few annuals like petunia, night phlox, coreopsis. I moved them to the east side of the house next to the foundation because some of the containers were drying out on top. I also noticed that the containers on my deck didn't sprout as well as the ones on my glass table on the deck. I moved as many as I could off the deck and on to the table.
ladyrose65
Original Author
11 years ago
I'm sprouting, but flowers like Stock and HH usually have their true leaves by now. I know it's the weather, but I am really going to make an effort to buy promix potting soil the summer.
girlcat36
11 years ago
We had a gorgeous day today; I was able to do yardwork in just a T shirt.
My jugs are still slow, but with today's warmth I noticed some teensy new sprouts, so I add add petunias, cleome, Brazilian verbena, and nicotiana to my list of sprouts.
The newer sprouts were in the jugs that I put on top of the metal lid of our firepit. I thought the heat from the sun on the metal during the day would warm the jugs more. Then I changed my mind, thinking the cold metal at night would cancel out the warm metal effect. I decided to move them today, and when I took a quick peek, I saw there were sprouts!
Next year I will experiment with multiple jugs of the same variety placed on different materials(decking, mulched ground, metal, concrete) to see how much of a difference it makes in sprouting speed. I think it would be interesting.

The only perennial I have that sprouted was hollyhocks. Nothing else...not even the lupine, which is usually fairly reliable.
terrene
11 years ago
Well I spoke too soon! Because there are 2 containers with sprouts today, Asclepias incarnata (Swamp milkweed) and the native Lupines - Lupinus perennis, host plant for the Karner blue butterfly.

Forgot that I DID have a Lupine and I know they are early sprouters!

The weath er is getting much warmer, mostly sunny and about 70 degrees F today. Opened the windows, so nice after a winter of stale air.

I am working diligently on getting the annuals sown.

My Germination is getting off to a slow start?

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