Why are you testing them for viability? Did you harvest too early so you think they might not have been ripe? I think I still have Yvonne's salvia seeds Token sent me. They're yours if you want them. I'm going to winter sow a blue variety that's perennial & doesn't get as tall.

I have many. Karen sent them to me. I would like to try them indoors. :)

Well, be sure to let us know how it goes. I haven't had houseplants in donkey's years--nowhere to put them where the cats won't knock them over/down.

I will :)

Neil, I started them inside under lights one time. They ended up the same size as the ones I wintersow, just about 4 feet. Last year I WSed them again (no space under my lights anyway) and had terrible results with only a few germinating so I used volunteers which also only got to 4 feet.

I think to get the really big 6' plants like Emily's, you have to use lots of high-test ferts like she does. I've also read that they do best in slightly acidic soil, while mine is slightly alkaline, but I don't alter that. I try to keep things in my yard pretty organic whenever possible. I generally give them only a little organic food at planting time and that's it for the year.

My poor results with WSing last year were a result of repeated attacks by Mother Nauture- first all blown away in a windstorm, then monsoon rains with no sun, later followed by drought. Later some were even knocked out by the guys building the new deck. But, new WSers, don't be discouraged by my negative results, because I had 4 very successful years prior to that. Last year was just a tough garden year here in general.

Karen

V1, I performed a germination test 2 years ago on the Yvonne's seeds and some Salvia 'Coral Nymph' seeds, both of which I collected in fall 2008 and wanted to make sure that they were viable before offering them for SASBE/trade.

My concern about your germination method, is that you have completely enclosed the seeds in wet paper towels and a ziploc, which will encourage them to mold. I perform germination tests by taking a flat tupperware, laying down a napkin on the bottom, spread the seeds, and then spritz the napkin. I put the container on a warm shelf, spritz daily, put the top on loosely so there is a little air flow (to reduce chance of mold), and wait. This works extremely well! Seeds that don't require cold strat usually germinate within a few days - week.

Here's a pic of the germ test (yes I am pretty anal and take pictures of them - heehee). The results of my Salvia viability test were about 95% with the Coral Nymph (on the left) and 60% germination with the Yvonne's, on the right.
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Thanks for the info Karen. I'll try your tips on some so I can compare how it will perform. Do you recall when you started to wsow them?

Terrene, I will move them out once I see them sprout. I've done it before on dianthus back in 2008. I'm going to try using your method too. Thanks so much! :)

Here is a link that might be useful: Dianthus

Neil, if you mean what year, I started growing them in 2007, so I've had them in my yard for 4 years. If you mean what time of year, I guess I do them around early March most of the time.

Yvonne's salvia are, relatively speaking, rather big, hard seeds. They don't necessarily sprout all at once like some seeds. Sometimes it's over a period of several weeks. Clothier says, for both salvia splendens and coccinia, :
surface sow 4 wks @ 68úF in light, if no germ. 4 wks @ 39úF, recycle , 10-20d , grow on @ 60úF

Karen

I'm a real Salvia fan.
My Yvonne salvia did not do well past year, don't know why. In fact, none germinated. Maybe the seeds I collected weren't good.
I love the blue perennial that gardenweed mentioned. Past summer I had plenty from 2009, and the ones I ws'ed did fantastic, so next summer I should have plenty without sowing.
I also had great success with the coral nymph. I plan to let them all re-seed, which they do so profusely.

I had poor germination on Yvonne's Salvia too, Ellen. I used mostly volunteers which were bigger than my wintersown ones. I get lots of volunteers from both Yvonne's and coral nymph.

I had less than stellar results on everything last year, first time ever. My early efforts were literally blown away in an April windstorm,
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so everything was sown very late. If I'd waited longer to plant out, I might have had more sprouts.

Karen

terrene - thanks for the clear description of your germination test and the photo. Very neat! I have some older seed that I need to test before WS season cranks up.

I'm back. I had a flu. Terrene, the germination didn't continue. Probably it was too wet but it didn't mold. I'll try another test once I feel better.

Hope you are feeling better V1! Yes it's a little tricky getting the moisture right. I have had seeds mold with this method, if they are sitting in too much moisture. They have also dried out if I've forgotten to spritz them. However, with the germination tests, it's not too much of a big deal, I toss the seeds after they sprout anyway (always feel a little regret throwing sprouts in the compost bucket!).

Interestingly, this is similar to how I hatch the butterfly eggs. After finding the egg, and clipping the foliage the egg is laid on, I keep it on a moist paper towel until hatching. Same tricky balance though, not too moist (or it can mold), not too dry.

I'm now wondering how the seed companies test their seeds??

I'm glad I went to this post. Windstorms are prevalent in our area.