Flowerlady, I sow my seeds in regular really nice potting soil outside in containers so I don't need specialized seed starting soil. That I have used only if starting indoors as it is sterile and helps to prevent dampening off disease.

My favorites to start seed are finely ground. Miracle grow is nice, Fafard is the best and is pricey. Jungle Grow from Lowes is also nice (and organic) Home made soil is probably a+ and there are many ways to do it. I've used and will use again the recipe a local urban farmer uses. He's just two miles away and has such good luck with it, it can' be bad!!

GGG

I think the fennel you got from me will grow in any decent soil. I have two plants and they reseed all over the place up here in PA! I like them because they are good for the butterfly larva to feed on.

FlowerLady, the four o'clock seeds I sent are either yellow or pink, on separate plants. They're from plants a neighbor gave me. I hope they grow well for you !

Carol

Just a heads up--red castor bean is poisonous. It's what ricin is made from. So if you have kids, you might not want to plant it in your yard. Here's a link to the Dave's Garden growing guide.

Enjoy your seeds!

Jennifer

Here is a link that might be useful: Red Castor Bean

Chicory is new to me this year as well. I saw pictures of it, fell in love with the blue flowers (what is it about blue?? I'm a sucker for blue flowers) and it sounded very easy to grow. Here's a link to info. Good luck to both of us with it!

Here is a link that might be useful: Chicory

The cleome is an old fashioned flower and is also known as spider flower, and kitty whiskers, because of its flowers. It is a sunny annual that reseeds easily. I got pink, lavendar and white plants this year . Like a box of chocolates, you never know what your gonna get! Plant them in the back of the border because they are tall and as they grow the lower stalk is not all that pretty. Interesting but not so pretty. They have no scent.They are sturdy and dont flop and I have never staked them. They are wispy. You probably need to google the photo, better than I can describe them. very easy to grow but they look weedy until the get some size on them so until you know the leaves dont weed there. Oh- this is funny---kids may think you are growing marijuana because of the 5 leaves! But of course that is the only resemblance, so dont worry! LOL enjoy! 4 inches of snow on ground here! Sue

Oooh! Oooh! I feel like I got called on by the teacher! (that was always good, BTW) LOL!

I have no idea what to tell somebody from little, so hopefully I can translate to zone 10 from zone 5.

The Dahlias are the most fun of anything! They take maybe 10-14 days to germinate, and then take off like a shot. They literally grow faster than Zinnias. The only thing to watch for is they cannot freeze, and would prefer not to have the temperatures dip below 36. They are native to Mexico and considered a hot weather plant. They are a premium annual (though they are perennial there, I know that for sure) and as such, are started in a good potting mix before planting outside.

The Lantana is very easy, but slow. Slow and steady, I would say. Forgiving of overwatering and underwatering. It is also a premium annual and we start it in soilless mix, but down there, well, maybe you could direct sow it now.

The Zinnias, well, not sure they are worth your while down there because they are annuals, but since they are Profusions, they probably are worth your while. You could probably direct sow them. Do Zinnias need darkness to germinate? Does anybody know? You'd probably better scratch them into the soil.

The Coral Nymph Salvia blooms when it's like 9" tall -- but then it keeps blooming on new growth -- and growing and growing and growing and growing! The Hummers investigated each and every flower on it at 10:00 am and also at 7:00 pm on a daily basis. I had to pull about 3 plants out of maybe a dozen I planted because they were encroaching on their neighbors. I planted the seed in WS jugs, they grew and I planted them. There wasn't anything odd or hard, but I have no idea about freezes. I don't think they can take freezes, but I am just not certain.

Offhand, I would say Zinnias, Salvia, and Lantana could be direct sown in the ground, but I would give better treatment to the Dahlias.

I think you'll like them all, BTW. It was my first year with all but the Zinnias and I loved, LOVED them all for their long-blooming and pretty flowers. The yalso required no staking and, well, they were just pretty!

Lime

The Centaurea americana will grow in just about any garden soil in full to part sun. You can sow them direct where soil is workable and lightly cover. The blooms are about 4 inches across and are white, sometimes with a little pink in the center. The plants grow 3-3.5 feet tall and will flower all summer, particularly if deadheaded. Imagine a Centaurea moschata on steroids-the blooms are several times as large. The blooms are excellent for fresh cut flowers and are attractive to butterflies. I am not at home and this is the first chance I have had to be online in weeks so don't have access to my photos. After the holidays when I get back to normal, I will send you one. In the meantime, think mid to back of border.
Have fun!
Alana

The zinnias I sent in are a mix in both variety and color. Most of them were dark red, magenta, and orange, though there were also some lighter pink and some peach with pink centers (those were cool).

If powdery mildew is a problem where you are, they may get it. I know some varieties are resistant, and I was supposed to have a few of those, but all mine had at least a touch of mildew this year. We did, however, have 17 inches of rain in August (normal is less than 7 in August I think), so that may have been the reason.

Good morning everyone ~ I want to thank you all for responding so soon. I really appreciate it. I hope to start planting seeds soon.

GGG ~ I have a nice huge bag of a seed starting mix, by Miracle Gro I think, I didn't go out and check the name again. It works great. How neat to get some great homemade soil from a farmer. Does he sell it or did he give you the recipe? Your gardens always look fantastic.

Ghoghunter ~ Is your the green or bronze fennel? I have been looking for some of the bronze lately. I am looking forward to planting the fennel from you and seeing what happens with the butterfly population. The hungry cats sure can do a number on plants can't they?

Msmisk ~ I hope I did get some yellow seeds from you. I have some bright pink and an almost white 4 o'clocks. I love them. Their scent is so sweet and the flowers so vibrant at twilight. I love them.

Jennifer Ruth ~ Whoever sent the castor beans did put poisonous on the pkg. I don't have children around, just neighborhood felines and our own feline girls. I don't think they would eat them. I would pick the seed heads before they are ready to drop seeds. We had these as a kid, but not the red castor bean. I think it will make a colorful addition to my tropical/cottage gardens. Thanks for that website page. I visit Dave's Garden a lot for info.

Pameliap ~ I love blue flowers too. They just do something to me. I'm hoping this will do well for me. I just read to add chicory to you coffee to make it less acidic. I think it's the dark dried chicory that they have at the grocery store. I look forward to growing another blue flowering plant in my gardens. Hope yours do well for you also.

Cooperbailey ~ Thanks for the info on cleome growing at the back of the garden because of it's height. I hope they will grow for me. I have a plant called cat's whiskers already and I love it.

Lime ~ Thanks for all the info on the seeds I got from you. I'll see what they do for me here. Tracy did a great job of sending seeds for my area. I cannot grow a lot of what northern gardeners can. I hope the red lantana will do well, it sounds interesting. I did read that it is a slow grower.

Poisondartfrog ~ thanks for the tip for putting the Centauria in the mid/back range of gardens. I hope these will grow for me also.

Flutteryby ~ Zinnias are happy flowers even if they do get mildew.

Thanks again everyone for sharing a bit from your gardens. I appreciate it and look forward to having a garden full of beautiful blooms.

FlowerLady

I'm sorry to say I am not sure of the fennel seeds. I have both bronze and green and they got mixed up! I am sure your caterpillars won't mind either!!!

Flower- you live in the perfect place for butterflies, lucky you!. Fennel is a magnet host plant for the black swallowtail.

My experience with Miracle Grow potting soil hasn't been a good one. Maybe it's because I live in such an arid state. I find if it dries out, even once, it's very hard to rehydrate. I usually mix my own potting soil with peat, perlite, vermiculite and bag of organic garden soil mix.

Happy gardening :-D

Edna

ghoghunter ~ I don't think the butterflies will mind which fennel they are visiting.

Edna ~ It wasn't miracle gro afterall. I think it's Lamberts or something like that. I'll have to look again.

I planted some of the seeds and the first sprout was chickory.

FlowerLady

I wasn't in this swap,but i grow coral nymph.My sister in N.Y. sent me seeds from hers.I started them out in a pot,then transplanted them in the ground,where they turned into a small bush.The hummers love them and they self seed.

I also have a red castor bean tree.DH bought it,as he does a lot of times.But he never reads labels as to where and how to grow something.If he lokes it he buys it.Not always bad!!! LOL Anyway when he came home with it,i looked it up and saw that it was poisonous,and at the time i was babysitting DGS.So we planted it behind our fence on the canyon side.It has to be 12 to 15 ft now maybe bigger,and we're always pulling out seedlings that blow into the yard.Other than that i think it's a pretty tree.

Here's the coral nymph,in it's early days.

Here's another picture of it before blooming,the one on the right side of the shed.

Kathi ~ Good morning and thank you for those pictures of the coral nymph. They are lovely and yours really got to be a good sized plant. It's nice to know that the hummers love them too. Do you have a picture of your red castor bean? I looked at some other pictures of your flowers and I love your place. I felt right at home. We grow some of the same things. Thanks for your input. I appreciate it.

FlowerLady

Flowerlady,glad you enjoyed the pictures.Here are a couple pictures of my castorbean tree.That's my GS and my Dh in the picture.

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These were taken last year.
Kathi

Kathi ~ Thanks for posting the two pictures of your castor bean tree. I think it is really pretty and believe I'll go ahead and plant some seeds, and just remember to pick seed pods from the trees before they drop them. Your grandson is a cutiepie.

FlowerLady

I just re read this thread- I forgot I had read it way back when! and it just occurred to me that cleome may also have the common name of kitty whiskers, but I am not sure. In any case you have plenty of seeds! Sue

Sorry about the delay in posting a photo of the Centaurea americana. Here goes, and have a great garden!
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Oh wow PDF, I have one of those from you, I'm so excited, M