Winter sow. Let the wintery embrace of Mother Nature followed by the warming sun of Spring germinate these seeds. The seeds will come up at the right time and be hardened off outside. Wind, rain, changeable temperatures will make them strong and healthy plants. Extended indoor culture is certainly more problematic in making healthy plants.

Most perennials don't bloom in the first year. They put their energy into growing and establishing themselves. They may have a few blooms in the second year with the third year being the one for a much better showing.

FataMorgana

I have winter-sown all the perennials on your list except the Delphinium, and Lobelia cardinalis instead of siphilitica. Lobelia only makes a rosette of foliage the first year, and blooms the 2nd. Most of the others bloomed the 2nd year. I did get a little bloom the first year on Eupatorium coelestinum and E. rugosum. Agastache foeniculum has bloomed a little the first year (it seeds itself around all over the place). I know someone who said Asclepias incarnata 'Ice ballet' had bloomed for them the first year, but that's never happened for me. I did have some A. tuberosa bloom a little the first year once.

I noticed perennials are much more likely to bloom the first year if you get the seedlings planted out reasonably early in the spring, such as April or May. Then I baby them through the summer by watering regularly if it doesn't rain and using the natural iron phosphate bait for slugs. They are a problem here esp. during wet weather and they can wipe out or really set back small plants. Perennials can put on some pretty good growth in the first year this way and some will bloom a little. It's not usually much of a display, but it's nice to see an example of the flower.

I have germinated all of them except for Pycnanthemum(haven't tried it yet) in the fridge. Don't believe everything you hear from the winter sow people.
No need to get started until January or later. Use soil less mixture with a small amount of distilled water in a Glad 'Snack' baggie. Try to time it so they germinate in warmer weather, around May 15. I am going to do all my native prairie species this year as warm(30), cold(60), warm.
Here is a link to the Tom Clothier data for reference.
http://tomclothier.hort.net/page02.html

What,specifically, that you've heard from the wintersowers shouldn't be believed? FYI, if you wintersow any of the plants you've mentioned, they'll automatically germinate around May 15 when the weather gets warm. I think it's going to be hard to push plants to bloom early when their natural tendency is to require two or more growing seasons to reach maturity. I wish you luck, though.

Martha
(8th year wintersower)

Not trying to get into the wintersow vs. not wintersow debate here but.......

The only time it makes sense to wintersow is when you are sowing seeds needing cold stratification and I know some of the ones you listed do not need it. I sowed the Asceplsis incarnata in early August and plan to put them in the ground under mulch all winter. I am winter sowing some native shrub seeds needing a couple months of cold strat. in pots outdoors and three others that are perennials that specifically need it.

There are no hard fast rules to this. To each his own. I rather enjoy sowing indoors in winter and have had very good results and it gives me an uplift in winter to do that. I have had good head starts on healthy plants this way and have sowed many SW shrubs, perennials, ornamental grasses, cactus, etc. I always have something indoors in winter I am sowing. I usually start them in October or November in a large sunny S. exposure window and grow them very cool in the coldest dark months sort of in a wait pattern, then let them get warm again in late Feb when the sun comes stronger. I use lights sometimes if necessary but usually they just sit there in the cold.

I am not a wintersower to the degree popularized to a hobby level of lots of containers with holes, lids etc craze with every seed I get being done that way. I just use regular pots in the shade under the carport for the seeds specifically needing a cold period. For penstemons its good, they come up when its still very cold. Some seeds needing cold I direct sow. Sometimes I experiment and try all different ways to see what does best with a backup supply to resow in spring.

Look up your different varieties and see what they need and go from there. I have sowed seeds as early as October and had established plugs to put into the ground come spring. Other times I put the late summer sown seedlings in the ground in late fall and cover them with leaf mulch and had good well rooted starts that way in spring. Look at nature, she does that all the time with seeds that have fallen.

Mostly, make it fun for yourself and do what you want. Save extra seeds for insurance, or try multiple ways and experiment. Do a test in a damp paper towel with a few seeds to see if they sprout in a few days. Often that will tell you want you need to know.

Yes, we all must try to see which methods work for which plants. Reading about growing them certainly helps, but so does experience. I have a basement and grow lights and also an "extra" old refrigerator. However, things that need that stratification have done better for me with winter sowing outdoors. And some "reluctant" seeds that take two or three years are certainly better outside in my "pot ghetto" rather than taking up space in my house.

Of course, I live in the country, and the rows of pots don't bother anyone here as they may in a more urban setting. I also have sown directly into large pots without any plastic container, but the milk jugs offer protection from falling limbs, heavy winds, and critter damage, so I am still sold on that for most of my germination projects. (No $$ for a greenhouse!)

You can outsmart Mother Nature by using inside the house, then frig., then inside again, etc., as some natives need multiple temperature changes. That way you compress many seasons into a few months and perhaps get blooming plants a little earlier.

As CactusGarden says, you need to make it fun and enjoy the miracle of watching that seed turn into a plant. Not all of my stories are successes, no matter the method, but my pleasure at seeing emerging growth happens in all circumstances.

"Conservation through propagation," according to the NC Botanical Garden. With native plants, that is a very important message.

I've enjoyed all of your postings everyone. Docmom---I do believe that winter sowing works... but I wanted to try my hand at indoors too. i will definitely be winter sowing some seeds. I will also try some indoors.

I really like how cactusgarden put it. I also just enjoy growing things and experimenting. And our winters are so long and dreary, I really enjoy having seeds germinating in the house, just for a chance to 'garden' in the winter. Plus, plugs grown in nurseries get a head start in greenhouses...why not try some at home, too? It saves $$$, plus it is fun and therapeutic to dig in the dirt when there are 3+ feet of snow outdoors. I know I am not as wise as Mother Nature, but ncrescue is right that there is immeasureable pleasure in growing seeds into plants.

I admit, too, sometimes I hope that perhaps giving plants a leg up on the season, they *might* bloom the first year instead of the second... I suppose that is why I started this thread. And after reading William Cullina's book Wildflowers I did suspect that some of the natives I am hoping to grow can be successfully propagated without winter sowing. that also makes me want to try indoor sowing! thanks for making that point, cactusgarden.
Interesting discussion everyone!

I sowed Agastache rupestris one year from seed and it bloomed the first year. It was twice as big the second year and had reseeded a few new ones in my garden. Agastache pallidiflora gets pretty big and blooms the first year. These are shown as "sow anytime" in my catalog. Both were real easy from seed.

correction:
I got mixed up about name on the Asclepcias incarnata, I sowed Oenothera incarnata. It came up in about a week this August. Oenothera missouriensis bloomed the same year I sowed it so I am kind of expecting this one will do the same.

Yea, helps to get through winter sowing indoors. Good Luck. I just got 9 new packets in the mail today from Plants of the Southwest.

I have started many seeds under lights, and it works fine, but it's fussier and more expensive than starting them outdoors. But if you want a head start on the season (i.e. tomatoes in July), starting them under lights works best.

Cactusgarden, I agree with you that sowing seeds outside in the winter is only necessary for those seeds that require cold stratification, or perhaps may germinate better with some cold treatment. The winter-sowing technique with milk jugs etc. works extremely well for this. It is also easy, cheap, and uses recycled materials. And, you don't have to take up any space in the fridge for stratifying, nor do you have to pay for any electricity for lights. It is one of the easiest and "greenest" ways to start seeds, great for beginners who have no confidence starting plants from seed.

For seeds that don't require cold strat, and this includes some perennials, I don't really use the winter-sowing method, I just sow them in the early Spring in assorted cups (recycled and re-used), line them up in plastic boxes or planters, and put them up against the south side of the foundation of the house.

Here's an example of my "spring-sowing" technique. These are Daylilies, sowed in cups this past spring on April 26th. I had nearly 100% germination within 2 weeks. Couldn't have been easier. Not only that, I've re-used these silly Cup o noodles cups for at least 3 years.
{{gwi:234710}}

Good job, Terrene! Yes, I also have done some early spring sowing, but I still put them outdoors with the tops on. My problem this year is that some are not yet big enough to go in the ground but are too tall for the containers. After our first frost, I will cover them again and see if they return next spring. If they don't, I will just have learned something.

None of my spring plantings are with the hard-to-get-seeds; most of those need stratification.

To add to what's been said, most of us have limited indoor space that is adequate for seed starting. Lighting, heating mats, etc. is expensive and should be saved for the seedlings that really need that fussing about for. If you can use a combination of outdoors and indoors where it makes sense, you will be able to start more seeds - and which of us doesn't want to do that?!? ;)

FataMorgana

I tried growing outdoors, not in pots but directly in the ground. Zero germination. In baggies in the fridge, I can see much better how they are doing. I also do around 100 or more species each year and small little baggies in the fridge work out really well. That many pots outside would be a gigantic mess.

Thanks Ncrescue! I don't generally use tops on the cups because the they are lined up against the foundation of the house (on the south side), which retains heat. I have noticed that when the winter-sown sprouts which are under the shrubbery on the east side of the house, and the gardens and yard get a hard frost, it doesn't touch the seedlings up against the foundation. It is sheltered there and I can grow things that are more tender.

After posting, I realized of course Hemerocallis is not native - but a lot of the seeds I sow in the spring are tender annuals, herbs, and veggies, and most aren't native to here where we have awful cold winters! I love to grow a lot of annuals native to more southern climes in North America - they are so pretty and the pollinators love them.