Update...My Stevia seedlings are doing well! So far, 7 out of the 9 seeds I put in the two pots have germinated. 6 of the 7 look sturdy too, even for tiny seedlings. I'll post a pic of them on this thread within the next few days. The surface sowing seems to be the way to go. Last year when I didn't have many germinate at all, I put them about 1/2 inch deep into the potting mix. They obviously got pushed down into the potting mix a bit this year with the first few waterings (warm to hot water from a sink sprayer thing), so i'm sure if you put them on the surface then heavily water the first 2-3 times/days, they will germinate fine. It seems to be the right thing to do also to keep the seedlings above 70 degrees. I put the two 1 gallon pots I have them in on top of a normal heeting mat. The room stays about 70 or so with high humidity (so other seedlings don't get too hot). Now, we have to see if I can keep them alive & also how fast n well they grow into bigger seedlings. :) - Steve

Ezzirah, Peat pellets are not the best way to start seeds. That could be the problem. People who use them tend to have many problems, including slow growth and nutritional deficiencies, and that is especially true of newer gardeners who are still learning how each type of vegetable best germinates and grows and what it needs in order to do well. (Peat is a 'dead' material, so it has no biological activity and no nutrition.) Many people who use peat pellets lose their plants to damping off because peat holds on to moisture a long time which contributes to various damping off fungi that kill seedlings, and then if peat gets dry, it is hard to rewet. You'll likely have more success with seed-starting if you use a sterile, soilless seed-starting mix. With peppers, you cannot compare two different varieties to one another because some pepper plants get big early and others get big late and some never get very big. If you were growing the exact same variety side by side from two different vendors, and the seed was fresh and packed for the current year, that would be a more valid comparison. I started about 20 varieties of peppers, including hot, sweet and ornamental varieties, from seed this year and every vaqriety has its own rate of growth and no two are just alike. Some of my smallest plants that seemed 'behind' the others as young transplants are now the tallest and best-performing plants, so you can't judge by their early size and growth. You judge them by how they grow and produce once they are transplanted and growing in the garden, not by how they perform as tiny seedlings. The recommended transplant date for fall peppers is July 15th, which is next week. I don't know when you started your peppers, but in order to them to be large enough to survive being transplanted in mid-summer head and grow well and produce, they need to be a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks old when set out. One reason that is especially important with summer plantings is that the pepper transplants need a large enough root system that they can survive a hot, dry day. Celery is incredibly hard to grow in our climate and is a cool season crop. Temperatures above 90 push it into dormancy. It is hard to germinate and dies easily. You germinate it at 60 to 70 degrees, then move it to a cooler location with sunlight to grow on for quite a few weeks before it is large enough to transplant. It takes celery 3 to 4 months to reach transplant size and the best time to transplant it is in early summer, so to plant it here, you would have needed to start the seeds in February or the first half of March and then set them out in approx. June. Celery has to mature before temps drop below below 28 degrees in the fall or early winter, but temps over 90 in the summer make it go dormant which disrupts its growth cycle. Oh, and it needs well-drained soil. If celery seedlings or plants get too dry at any time, they stunt or die easily. There's a reason you don't see "celery" on everyone's grow list here in this state. Not many people grow it here because most years our weather is completely wrong for it. Last year's cooler than average, cloudy, rainy, humid summer might have been a good year for celery for anyone with really well-draining soil. So, I'm not sure there's anything to blame Johnny's for. Peat pellets are notoriously troublesome as we discussed a lot on this forum back in the winter months; with peppers you're comparing apples to oranges; and it is the wrong time of year for celery transplants to grow in addition to it being one of the most finicky vegetable varieties around. I can't see where Johnny's is responsible for any of that. I'm not saying any of the above to be harsh or unkind, but rather to be honest so you'll understand why you might be having problems with your seedlings and blaming Johnny's unfairly. If a seed vendor sends out bad seed, I'd be the first to suggest they were at fault if I thought they were and the first to suggest that they should correct what is wrong. Honestly, though, I don't think Johnny's is at fault in this case. The poor seed companies often get blamed for new gardeners' inexperience and that is not fair. Gardening is a learning-by-doing process and you'll learn lessons every year, whether is it you first year or your fiftieth. There's just so very many variables and great results are never guaranteed. Don't let your frustration with starting seeds in the middle of summer ruin the fun of gardening for you. It is all a good experience because you learn something every time. Dawn

Well, I must not have walked under any ladders or had any black cats cross my path because boy do I feel lucky!! My seed packet has arrived with the most wonderful assortment of seeds. Are you sure it's not Christmas? Trading seeds is always fun, but with Alana leading the way, and everyones participation and fantastic seeds, this was the most fun trade ever. I have loved it all. Special thanks to you Alana for all the work and thoughtfulness. To each of the traders thank you for sharing all these seeds!! Must get back to my oohing and aahing. :)) Happy Halloween I'm off to see the Wizard! Jean/recipesaver2

Welcome, Rose and Faye! Very happy to have you join our group. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. We have eaten Thanksgiving here at home for years and years and years and years... anyway, you get the picture. This year our younger daughter in Durham wanted to have Thanksgiving at her house. Because of our pets, it's really hard to get away, but we took the dog and spent 9 hours or a little longer in the car and ate with them this year. The food was great and she had set her table so pretty and all. It would have been nice to be able to stay there overnight or something and gotten more of a visit, but normally we both do not leave home at once so we can keep the arrangements normal for our pets. (Those of you with family close by, be thankful! If you have family who will take care of your pets so you can travel, be even more thankful! LOL) We have horses and a cat as well as the dog so about 13 hours was as long as we could be gone. You can bet there were some hungry horses and a hungry cat when we got home! For a few years after he retired and they moved near us, my dad would take care of the pets for us for a few days so we could get away. Wow, was that a luxury! Now to plan what to do today... maybe some online shopping? I sure don't want to mingle with the crowds in the stores. Once in a while I will shop later in the day on the Friday after Thanksgiving, but I will not get up super early and do it. I much rather be sleeping and have no clue what anyone wants for Christmas anyway. "Browsing" at 4 a.m. is not my idea of fun. LOL Enjoy your day! Jeanne