You want a nice light planting (potting soil ) mix that drains well. Those nifty things you add water to tend to stay very wet. But if you mean the peatpots you fill with potting soil, those would be ok....you can put them in a large storage bin with drainage holes in top and bottom. I bought some aluminum foil roaster pans with raised plastic tops and some dollar store plastic storage containers (found some about 8x8") to supplement my jugs. You can use large yogurt containers and or such, some use iced coffee cups. The important things are they should be covered but with some air holes to allow nature to "water" them and make sure you have drainage holes in the bottom. You can use pretty much anything from Ziploc bags in a plastic box to planters....but yes, you have to cover them. Also ceramics will probably freeze and crack!!

See wintersown.org and read thru the how to.....well explained including why you need a cover.

The seedstarter containers might be ok if the have 2-3" min for soil and you put them in something or cover with something that has height for seedling to grow
Hope this helps!

Valal111, thanks for all the info!

Yes, I was talking about the little biodegradable pots that you fill with potting mix yourself (and can then plant the entire thing in the ground without disturbing the roots). So maybe I can get a clear bin or something to put a bunch of the little pots in....?

I had read thru the how-to on wintersown.org, but on the FAQ on this site (see link below) I saw an article about container gardening and winter sowing, and it didn't mention anything about making/buying lids, so I'm not sure about whether they're needed for those types of containers....? If they are, does anyone have ideas for lids?

And I know people always say not to leave your ceramic and terra cotta pots out in the winter, but they seem to do fine for me and others around here... maybe it is something about the Colorado climate (dryness, maybe?) that makes it ok?

Here is a link that might be useful: FAQ:

The problem with the little cell packs in flats is that they just don't hold enough potting mix. The less mix there is the quicker it drys out or overheats. Once the seedlings are growing and get some roots they dry out even faster. Peat pots might not hold up too well to the months of damp freeze/thaw with wintersowing either.

I looked at the FAQ and see what you mean, no mention of lids with container planting. Personally I wouldn't sow directly into container plantings, especially without lids. Either way the seeds are going to shift and have different germination rates. You would probably end up digging them up and moving them around anyways and filling in bare spots. Fashioning a cover to fit would be a pain, but necessary. Covers keep some of the moisture in and protect the surface from wind blowing out seed, driving rain, birds eating seeds, squirrels burying food, weed seed blowing in, etc.

If you were to try either thing you mentioned I would only do it in the spring for things that come up quickly and will be transplanted promptly. Then you wouldn't have to worry about closely watching them for as long to prevent drying out. I have done marigolds in spring in the shallow seed starting flats with ventilated domed covers that way with success.

I do like to wait to do any tender things like zinnias until right around the last frost date or even after. It is just too much of a pain when an extended unseasonally warm spell makes them germinate and is followed by freezes and frosts. To me, having to throw blankets over containers or bring them in overnight isn't worth the extra growth you may get by starting earlier.

Molanic, thank you for the input!

I think that those little clear, round, plastic trays that they sell for placing underneath indoor plant pots might work well for lids on the larger planters. I might give those a try with my container zinnias, closer to the frost date.

I'm going to try the biodegradable pots too, in a Rubbermaid bin or something. They are 3" pots, so they're bigger than a yogurt container... I'll report back on how they worked.

I had a friend who used to put seeds in her concrete containers outside, and then would cover the whole top o the container with plastic wrap, propped up with toothpicks (like you would for a frosted cake, lol). It always seemed to me that this cover would not survive the elements of a New England winter, but every year she had flowers sprouting up in the containers! I don't know if she ever had to replace the plastic wrap or not, but these containers were on her front and back porch/steps so she could monitor them easily if she needed to.

If anyone tries smaller containers inside a larger one (i.e. peat pots in a plastic bin) remember that your bin needs drainage holes as well.

Dee

Sorry...I've been MIA and just got back here and saw the postings. The point of the cover with wintersowing is to kind of create a "greenhouse" where the temps will be warmer and if you use a top (vs. milk jugs), you need holes to let a little snow/rain in, but not TOO many. Drainage holes in the bottom of the container (and/or if you use peat pots, as mentioned, and put them in another container to hold them, that needs drainage holes as well.) You would want something to hold your peat pots anyway (and not be out in the elements without cover so your peat pots dont fall part in the snow/spring rains, no?

Putting the smaller containers in another larger container keeps them from getting knocked over, animals getting into them and more.

As Dee mentioned, I saw that some people direct sow in their larger planters/pots and one woman put ping pong balls on the top of wooden sticks about 12" high or chopsticks to hold the plastic sheeting (I got some at Home depot, a paint tarp clear sheeting) so you can wintersow right in the container that it will grow in. I bought some styrafoam balls to put on the top of my wood sticks..have not set this up yet, but plan to use this for some herbs/annuals in Mar/April. I thought that was a great idea. I lost a couple nice ceramic pots when I didnt take them in in the winter. My fault!

Lily, I would love to hear how your method works out for you. This is my first year WSing also, and I am using a variety of containers. I also had some plastic shoe boxes I didnt need any more, so put drainage holes in them and covered them with plastic sheeting held with elastics.

Hope this year is a bumper crop year for everyone wintersowing! :)