Terene, Your columbine origami mixed color seeds will bloom the first year from seed. I planted mine a few years ago in mid March and they bloomed in June through the end of July. They have a long bloom period, rebloom actually and you don't need to dead head them. A friend of mine sowed some of my origami blue seeds last spring, in mid April and they bloomed for her all of the month of July. Since your's are mixed colors, you don't know what each plant will bloom in color till the bloom. You might want to plant each seedling as an individual until it blooms. Once you know which seedling is which color, when they finish blooming, you can move the plants into clumps of like colors to have larger plants for next year. If you don't care if they bloom mixed together than just plant them as clumps. I sowed mine, but they where all individual colors in cottage cheese containers, with about 15 seeds together in each container sort of scattered in the center of the container. then I planted the seedlings as one clump. If you purchase the plants in the nurseries, it is usually in a large container that has at least 10 plants in it. That's how a friend of mine that owns a farm and greenhouse in the area I live in sows seeds, and told me how to sow the seeds. They are worth the time to sow and the expense, they are a beautiful long term bloomer and stay nice and bushy, not to tall, not to short. Fran

FAQ-SEED CHANGE Outline 1--Special Instructions for the Seed Exchange --make them a LOT friendlier than the existing ones are, if OK with GW. 2-Getting set up and started A--setting up your GW profile and email settings B--setting up your Trade Page-Post the date it was updated at the TOP of the page --note seed source if other than your garden Commercial (C)-Garden (G) received in Trade (T) --note year harvested, received in trade or purchased, if it is known. C-Member Page Blurb-share a bit about yourself or your gardening style and/or challenges. Even if you are a very private person, possibly you could at least share with us what you enjoy growing. 3--Nothing to trade? Join in the fun by responding to Seeds for Postage ‘offers’ --Everything you ever wanted to know about seeds for postage offers --Members with excess seeds to share 4--Can I trade seeds I have gathered from my garden, ie flowers, vegetables, shrubs, trees, etc? What about saving seeds from Hybrid plants? --and also refer them to the Saving Seed Forum, and/or the FAQ there. 5--How should I label my seed packets? Both common and botanical names if known Year of harvest or purchase or received in trade Your GW Member Name, in case there are any questions Additionally growing instructions are nice but not required. It’s also nice to note if the seeds are annuals or perennials if known. (This is just FYI - My seed packets contain the following information plant name, annual/perennial/biennial, USDA Zone, Number of seeds, Light, Soil, Height, (bloom time and color if there is room), my screen name and the year of harvest. ) 6--How many seeds are considered a fair trade? How many seeds are considered a 'fair' trade? A fair trade is whatever you and the other trader agree to. Generally, two to three dozen seeds should be enough to ensure germination and growth of a satisfying number of plants. However, the most certain way to assure both parties will be satisfied is to discuss quantities when negotiating the trade. -- 7--Can I trade last years seeds or seeds older than that? (Some seeds must be fresh to be viable while some can be decades old and still be viable. If you are trading for seeds that do not remain viable for long discuss their freshness with the other person when you negotiate the trade. ) 8--Posting a trade --checking R and R 9--How do I pack my seeds for trading and then protecting them when mailing them? --What should I include? 10--Where do I buy bubble envelopes, and what size should I buy? Are they then reusable? Do I 'have' to buy and use bubble envelopes? Can I just use bubble wrap in a regular envelope? List numerous places where bubble envelopes envies can be bought and suggest sizes...plus more 11-postage costs...sigh 12-Once your trade is complete-The Rate and Review Forum --Please leave a review 13-- I have questions and don't see the answers anywhere. Who or where can I ask? Suggest using the Conversation side of the Seed Exchange, and maybe doing a search via the search box found just below the list of threads on page one. ***extra things to add How do I learn more about Winter Sowing that I see referred to so much? How can I find out how to save and dry my own seeds? How do I know if my saved seeds are viable? Can I save and trade seeds from hybrid plants? Will they grow true from seed? How should I store my seeds? Seed Exchange acronyms, abbreviations and various terms How to Post Pictures Misc Hints and Tips +++++++++++++...glean more info from the existing FAQ and/or rework maybe

It's late at night.....you're packing up the last of the day's trades, and suddenly you realize that you don't have enough seeds to fill your trader's requests. HORRORS! This is major hassle because you now have to email the trader who's order you can't fill and offer them something else, or cancel the trade. So...how do you avoid the PITFALL of over-trading? Offer your seeds for trading only after they're made into packets. If you know how many packets of seeds you have to offer you can't "over-trade" them (arranging to trade more packs of seeds than you actually have made.) Over-trading is one of the most frequent mistakes that new traders make! It is a major hassle to email someone and cancel a trade. Keep track of your seed packet count to eliminate this pitfall.

As long as your older seeds have been kept away from severe fluctuations of temperature and/or stored away from direct sunlight they'll be fine. Many seeds can last for several, several years. What you can do is that when you post your list of seeds put a little note into your post to let the traders know how well the seeds have been cared for by being stored well, and put the collection year next to the plant name. The other traders will know from the very beginning that they're trading for older seeds. That will be good way to post your seeds.