Hello juanital aka garden_momma, " Can the growth and bloom be done with anything under lights? " I wouldn't go so far as to say anything, but a lot of things can be grown under lights, provided that some things are taken into account. Outdoors, many potential pests have natural enemies that keep them in check. For example, aphids, thrips, and fungus gnats. Indoors, in the absence of "natural enemies", those pests can have devastating population explosions. and some control should be used if you notice one of those pests. I have been fortunate not to have a problem the last three years, but I did discontinue the practice of bringing zinnia cuttings indoors in the Fall. and that apparently was one way I was bringing outdoor pests indoors. Growth under lights is used to start a wide variety of plants as seedlings in the Spring, which are then set into the garden to get an early start, as an alternative to just planting the seeds in the garden after the soil warms up. Indoor starting can become indoor gardening. There are books on the subject. Since zinnias are a hobby for me, being able to raise zinnias year-round has been a big help. That way I can get four generations of zinnias in a year, which speeds up my ability to get new forms of zinnias. ZM

Hi Pm2! I started them on 4/4 and germination by 4/14.... We got down to 21-25 degrees between April 22nd-27th and they sailed thru that very well :D Blooming started June 20th and they kept right on going thru the first hard frost. Oddly I found the yellow ones to be much more prolific in the bloom department than the white. Give them a hot "mostly" dry location in full sun...the ones I had planted in the nastiest leanest soil (gravelly/sandy) did the best. On cloudy or overcast days don't expect blooms; blooms close up in evening. July 21st... October 17th...had been getting frost since September 21st. Pics taken in the morning and flowers not fully open yet... Taken the same day I found these 2 self-sown seedlings that popped up in the gravel road outside of the bed perimeter...HAHA!

Nice! Love the last photos of the 2 poppies :) Here the Johnny Jump up are getting tired already, but they started blooming a good 2.5 months ago... either last years fall sprouters and spring sprouters both puttering out for the time being. Fall usually brings more blooms :) My Chinese Houses started blooming about 1 week ago...Pretty, but plants are way small yet. Vera

That Maltese Cross looks great with the Coreopsis! I think I may have to wintersow some this year. Oh, I've also added the Bullseye Geranium to my list that you had in one of your earlier threads. Thanks for all the great ideas! Bonnie