Where do you have them growing? What about heat? Also what did you use as a starting medium? Mine are grown on a seedling heat mat.. I got one of the 4 foot by 2 foot ones, (Now I wish I had two!) that will cover enough room to have a few hundred seedlings. I would say up to 2 weeks. I had maybe 1-2 cups that took a month. I still have 3 cups with nothing lol , its been 3 -4 months, I just keep telling myself they had dormant parents. I think Im going to give up on them soon. Also , I wouldnt bother putting them in a tray of water, until they really take off, they are not going to need water every day. Unless you are pretty much putting them ouside, you still will need a light source. This was about a month ago.. I start mine inside in January, so heating and lighting is a must... especially since they are started in a cool basement. Everyone is correct though, I have some duds as well. A few start, then wither, a couple albino. I have one cross that I swear hasnt grown a mm in a month, it sits and sits, I told them shape up or else, I will feed you to the cat! BTW if you have cats, daylilies seem to attract them better than catmint! I start mine up HIGH, im over six foot and I have to stand on crates to water. It might be overkill, but im not going to lose them.

What year do you plan to have your wedding? The reason I ask, peonies and roses take some time to establish to bloom--sometimes several years, and would be considered a permanent planting. I would also caution you, that what bloomed in April one year, might bloom in June the next. Hopefully, someone who has personal knowledge of the Morristown area will be able to help you. Perhaps contact your local garden nurseries, garden clubs, or local master gardeners (try your local County extension for master garderner information). Congratulations and good luck to you!

If your light hangs only an inch or two from the seedlings, they shouldn't be getting too leggy as long as they're getting 12-14 hours a day under the light. Other factors that lead to leggy seedlings are too much water, too much fertilizer, and/or too much heat. It is hard to get seedlings under lights too much light because artificial indoor light is much, much, much less intense than sunlight. However, even though artificial light is less intense, the plants still need a rest at night so leaving the light on 24 hours a day isn't recommended either. For what it is worth, most seed-starting 'newbies' overwater and overfeed their seedlings, keep them too warm and don't give them adequate air circulation, so keep that in mind as your seedling grow. I let my seedlings get really dry before I water them, but I try to avoid letting them get so dry that they wilt. I also keep a ceiling fan on in the plant room whenever the lights are on, only turning off the fan when I turn off the lights on the light shelf. Air movement gives you stockier plants. I think 60-65 degrees would be better than 68-72 if you could manage that. Dawn

I have 3 compost piles going. I reinforced one with 25ft of 1/2" hardware cloth to keep any rodents out. 25ft was enuff to go 3x3 and line the bottom and make a cover. I use it for the kitchen scraps and have not had a problem since. In another pile I compost just weeds and lawn trimmings. No kitchen scraps. And contrary to what some here believe composting just greens will heat up nicely when you add just the right amount of water. In the past I would add kitchen scraps to the center of a hot pile w/o any rodent problems. The reason to get the pile hot is not only to make compost faster but to kill the weed seeds. I am sure you will be harvesting weeds on 35 acres. This time of year they come with seeds as will anything from a tree service. They grind up ivy, sumac, bind weed, bitter sweet, and anything else that is in the way. IF you have a way to heat it up that is a good thing. IF/When you have compost with weed seeds you can either add it to a hot pile or steam it using an old gas grill. But to me that is not only more labor intensive but adds to the COG (Cost Of Gardening).