Oilpainter - Thank you for the tips. Sounds like I was on track. I feel better knowing I can tuck my babies in safely! Shelley - Your hostas look gorgeous! Now I'd love to pick your brain and find out exactly what you did. I really want to start hostas and have it work this coming winter. Sounds like you WinterSowed them? I did that for a few things. I learned about it around January, which made it a little late to start. The plants I WS'ed did very well, though. I'd love to hear what you did - medium, containers, etc. Did you post details as you did it? I could search back if so. Oilpainter did a good job covering the basics of lasagna/no-till bed preparation. Since I've finally gotten going with starting from seed, I can afford to expand to the gardens I've always wanted. I've never done the no-till thing before, but it's going well. A local appliance store will give me as much cardboard as will fit in my station wagon, leaves & grass can be had at the dump, and a local horse owner bags manure & leaves it out for the taking. Makes the whole thing pretty easy. I was already pretty into composting, so it seems natural. (My DH & kids built me a 3-bin set up for Mother's Day - they knew what I really wanted.) My question for Oilpainter about over-wintering my perennials in a different place was because the process of composting generates heat. The way it happens in no-till gardening isn't as hot as I get in my bins (which get up to 150 degrees), but I'm guessing it's still too much warmth for perennials which should be going dormant for the winter.

If it's in a fully enclosed porch, that helps. If it's warmer in there during the day, that helps. But it can also help if you get yourself some bubble wrap and wrap the pot a few times. It's kind of the easiest and fastest ways to get a little extra insulation on a pot in the porch if you can't do more serious stuff. If the pot is small enough to fit in a cooler, that works well too- think of the styrofoam caps folks sometimes use on rose bushes to overwinter. If you get box food delivery service that has insulation in the box, that insulation works well too. Yes, you should water. But not a lot. You don't want the dirt to go bone dry, but you don't want it wet either. The plants are dormant and so don't really need water themselves, but the dirt still should be a bit moist. And pots seem to want to stay damp longer when it's cold out so you might not need to water much at all depending.

For four years, I did a booth at several local farmer's markets. I got into it because I had so many plants left over from wintersowing after I gave and swapped alot away. The hard part is finding a farmer's market that doesn't already have a plant seller, or at least one that didn't sell what you have to offer. I stopped because 1) two other vendors in my main market started carrying the same plants in the same sizes I was selling and 2) the new markets were charging too much for a booth. If you can overcome 1 and 2, and you still like the idea of selling (and making money at it) you have to also check out the answers to 3) does your state or county requiure a liscence to sell plants (Maryland does not) 4) convincing the market that since you are not selling food and have no employees, you don't need an expensive insurance policy 5) figure out how you are going to package your plants to sell. I got 3, 4 and 6 inch pots for free from swaps and generous neighbors as a way to recycle the plants. 6) figure out how you are going to label your plants, keeping in mind the large number of novice gardeners you need to sell plants to. 7) figure out your costs and prices including soil, seeds and lebels (ink if you are printing them out on your computer) Finally remember that early in the summer, the produce growers usually sell flowers and vegetable starters and hanging baskets until they have produce to sell. I made good money and some new friends my first three years. The last year, I just broke even and decided that it wasn't a worthwhile investment of my time. But for a few years it was a nice second income. I know other s just do a plant "garage sale" which is easier if you can get the traffic.

Make sure they get plenty of light (see "Do I need special lights") and fertilize weekly (see" I'm new to starting seeds...?). When they're big enough to handle,usually when they have 2-3 sets of leaves, it's time to transplant them to individual containers,or space them out if you have them in a community flat. Those sown in individual containers should be thinned to the strongest seedling by snipping off the extras with scissors. Now that damping -off is less of a risk, you may want to use a part soil mix for "potting on", 1 part sterile potting soil to 2 parts vermiculite or perlite and /or sphagnum or peat, for the sake of economy. If you need to transplant,very carefully dig up the plants, with a knife or wooden label,etc.,taking care to get under the roots. Separate them gently, handling them by the leaves rather than the easily-damaged stems . I often use a pencil to help untangle the roots, using the same pencil to poke a hole in the soil ,making it deep enough that the roots can dangle and the seedling can be placed at the same depth it was growing previously. Firm the soil around the roots, and water well. Repeat until you're cross-eyed,then start again the next day..... Weather permitting ,seedlings may be transplanted outdoors at this stage ,or grown on indoors for larger transplants. Before planting out, seedlings or young plants must be "hardened off" over a period of 10-14 days. Begin by putting plants out in shade, giving some shelter from wind, and gradually exposing them to sun, maybe an hour at first,increasing an hour each day. Cut back on watering,but don't let them go completely dry. Once they're hardened off, they're ready to go outside permanently (where they belong!!). If possible,pick a cloudy day . Again, try to handle the roots with care,and set the plant at the same depth it was growing (though tomatoes benefit by being planted deeper,roots will form along the stem)firm the soil around the roots and water well, a dilute solution of water-soluble 15-30-15(a teaspoon to a gallon of water) will help stimulate the roots. When all your plants are in the ground, fix yourself a tall,cool one and celebrate !