Last year was definitely not a good gardening year for me. My mother died six weeks after my father died (and it was quick. She went in the hospital, got diagnosed and died all in a weeks time). My father, we had known since October 07, and then he died in February 08 (which was pretty quick, but at least we had more time than with my mom). They both died a good 20 years before their parents ever did, which was also unexpected, considering they had better health care and better lives than their parents ever did. So, no, I don't usually wait that long, and I don't make it a practice :-) There's a few other jugs of things that are left over from last year that I was waiting to thaw out before I tossed them in the garden beds. They're getting dumped very soon. A tri-color sage seedling survived the fall and winter too, so I won't be surprised if these other left-overs wind up germinating when I dumpt them! I'll be sure to get pictures of the Sweet Rocket when it blooms (I'm really liking the leaves on it! Nice :-) Linda

Had the blues all winter and was into other things. So I'm getting a late start and just don't have time to post much in this forum but I lurk sometimes. I'm going to plant most of the seeds I've accumulated, but some of them have to be direct sowed in fall, early spring, or need some kind of special handling. Have 17 gal milk jugs ready w/vent holes in top 'cuz it's getting warm, also some 1/2 gals if I run out: Siberian Wallflower (leftovers), Adenophora Bulleyana (failed last year), Agastache Cana, Bluebeard Delphinium, Canterbury Bells, Digitalis Floribunda, Digitalis parviflora (ugly brown), Digitalis Primrose Carousel, Snowflake Baby's Breath (may sow direct and cover with open 2 liter bottle), Verbena bonariensis (not my zone, don't know what I'll do with it if it germinates), Painted Daisy, Verbascum Snow Maiden, Verbena Pink Spires, Russian Sage, Blue Dreams Catmint, White Swan Echinacea, Burgundy Gaillardia, Crazy Daisy, dill, curled parsley, cilantro, basil, chives. Some Lupin has to be direct sowed, and a couple others if I get to it. Morning Glories, may do sometime. Odds 'n ends I probably won't plant this year or ever, wildflower mixes, freebies, etc. All the perennials I got out of last year WS that are back are some catmint, 2 Rudbeckia Prairie Sun, nice mound of Crazy Daisy, one white foxglove and one puny one. One smallish Foxglove Candy Mountain came back from self sowing, those were nice, should buy some more seeds. These I bought says packed for 2007 and were kind of expensive, don't want to mess with them. Lemon Clematis (buchananiana), 20 seeds; Clematis Integrifolia (doesn't say what color) 20 seeds; European White Birch, Betula Pendula Northern (tried those and failed just a few left)in pkt, says they need cold treatment. First person who wants them I'll mail in the US (pls check if they are allowed in your state). I don't want anything in trade, have my hands full. I also have two older pkts of those Monet poppies that have to be direct sowed, have no place for them so those are up for grabs, don't want to put up a trade list right now. Finally I'm sowing collected marigold seeds now directly into planters but have way too many seeds, some from prior years, am using some I collected this spring right now. I'll try to find a photo. The prettiest photo they were too crowded with other stuff, this one is pretty much how they bloom every year. They start out not looking like much, then pick up and bloom true by July or so. If planted singly and are happy, they will form a huge mound. I crowd my stuff too much and Darwin's law takes over. Also lobelia and a pretty Forget-Me-Not mix, kind of late to start the former.

Hi, Here is another item from my grandmother's collection. I thought some gardner would love it! Earl Rockwell's "Sowing Seeds of Kindness" A little girl hoeing while the little boy drops seeds onto the ground. So Cute. I would love to trade for plants. No chips or breaks! See my trade list and make me an offer. I also have a White Owl Figurine by Enesco dated 1980. White owl stands about 9" tall, No Chips or Cracks. I have a picture of these figurine if you would like me to email them to you.

It depends upon how much time you have to care for seedlings before they are tranplanted into permanent spots in the garden. If you are growing garden annuals that you want blooming as soon as they go into the ground they need to be started indoors several weeks ahead of your planting date. Seed packets will offer germination information to guide you...keep in mind that the information on the back of the packet is based upon ideal circumstances. Most garden perennials do not bloom their first year from seed so they can be started anytime. Starting indoors will require care to prevent damp-off and repotting if felt necessary. Outdoor germination you will need to protect the soil from desiccation by wind and sun, the seedlings should also be protected from slugs or snails, if a hail storm is coming you can help protect young direct-sown seedlings by turning an old laundry basket over them for the duration of the storm. Direct-sown seedlings are often a tasty treat for birds and bunnies. A scarecrow and fencing can help protect the seedlings from critter damage, however a starving animal will ignore devices used to deter or scare them away. Vegetable packets offer a "days to maturity" guideline to suggest when to sow your seeds. Those days are generally based upon how long it takes to grow the first ripe produce after a seedling is about four inches high, those dates are not indicative of how many days needed to produce ripe fruit after germination. Germination requirements can vary from species to species, though some plant families may have similar requirements. If you have no seed packet to read for germination requirements then you can look up the information on the internet by typing in the plant name + germination. The information may also be found in books at the library. Winter Sowing, done outdoors, goes on all throughout winter. See the Winter Sowing Forum FAQs for information. There is also forum with FAQs for Starting Seeds Under Lights.