How cool! Congratuations to you. Yes this is so fun and I just love it. This is only my second summer and I still get so excited. I have learned so much this last year, but still I am full of questions. This site is absolutely wonderful. Such helpful folks here. I feel so comfortable asking simple questions. I was telling my husband just this morning that without the help from those on this site I never would be able to do what I am doing. A big THANK YOU to everyone here!!

Hi, I sowed Moonflower Vine directly into a large container on 6/3. I am sure I could have gotten them in 2 weeks earlier than that but my pots weren't ready. They are climbing a large hoop that is anchored in two large pots. No sign of blooms yet. This is the second time I am growing them and I remember the first time I tried them, they barely had time to bloom before the first frost. I tried them again because I saw a Backyard Habitat episode about Hummingbird Moths and they are supposed to be attracted to the Moonflower Vine. Plus, we had a late fall frost last year and I had left over seed, so in they went. I am having the same thing happen that Karen did, with the lower leaves yellowing and falling off. I don't mind because I grew MGs on the same hoop and their foliage is keeping the bottom full of leaves. The MGs, I had seedlings to plant in the same pot on 6/3 and they just started blooming last week.

I also live in Ottawa and I find the only way to get plants in pots to flower well and early is to fertilize every two weeks or so with just a regular water-soluble fertilizer (20-20-20). This year I am using a pelleted fertilizer which you sprinkle on the surface of the soil. They get a little feed with each watering. As an example, I grew a Brugmansia for 3 years without getting a bloom, until last year, when I fertilized regularly. It was worth the wait. I used to go 'all organic' but pots just can't provide the required nutrients (no worms, instant compost,etc). Another thing I use in my pots is Soil Moist so I don't have to water every day, except in very hot periods. I use lots of containers to avoid slug damage, and also to get sun which is limited in my garden (North facing and lots of trees). Hope this helps.

I know this thread is old and inactive but it gave me some ideas and I wanted to share my experience. I planted a punch of seeds (Ipomoea purpurea (mixed) mid/late march. Separated seedlings after they got true leaves into 4 inch pots. after they had 6-8 leaves I put one in a cupboard to cut its light exposure to 10 hours or so for a week to 10 days. Kept another on heating mat for a 4-5 days and/or provided supplemental lighting. One pot was sent outdoors. End of a couple of weeks the one with limited light exposure had buds the rest did not. After another couple of weeks in the south facing window (default location) all were sent out on the balcony where they get 2-3 hours of sun if it's out. The weather has been pretty irregular, 23 one days 10 the next and mostly rainy. The buds on the one are holding up but the cold exposure outside has slowed their development into blooms and wind has been trying hard to kill them. Anyhow, got them back indoors today. None of the others have recognizable buds yet. Will update when the one with buds blooms. Bottom line if one grows in a pot and limit daylight (like for kalanchoe or poinsettia, but not for weeks, just days) to the seedlings, one could get at least Ipomoea purpurea to start blooming early. Whether, the blooms, once initiated, will stop after a while, I am not sure. Will update how this goes. I know this was not a rigorous experiment but take it for what its worth. I started more than a couple of dozen kinds of seeds and this was obviously not top of my list.