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rootofnewtA couple weeks ago, I started several seeds in peat pellets: Bells (i can't remember if these are Cathedral Bells or Bluebells or what), Morninglory (tricolor), Moonflower (evening glory), Delphinium, Liatris, Parsley (dark green flat), Lobelia (crystal palace), Foxglove (white).
Tonight, I started some more, in seed trays and peat *pots* and peat pellets: Bush Tomato (Ace), Sweet Willian (extra dwarf mixed), violet Cathedral bells, lamb's ears (for boy's fondling pleasure), ipomopsis (maybe... can't remember)basil (greek spicy globe, butterfly flower, lovage, hyacinth bean vine (ruby moon), and red perilla/shiso. also--yellow pear/cherry tomatos, and italian roma tomatoes. and... dwarf morning glory (mixed colors). i also planted a purple pole bean or two.
The moonflowers are so big (sprouting second leaves soon) that I had to move them into larger cups (they were in a peat pellet flat/house). I've never had them so much as *germinate* before.
We need to ready the garden plot. I bought a soil test kit (boy's excited about it) so that we can figure out just what it is the soil needs. My tomatoes had some kind of blight last year which I think was magnesium deficiency. i can't test for that, but sprinkling some epsom salts out there won't hurt.
Soon, I can plant radish and raab directly outside. And then the parsley can move outdoors, followed by direct sowing of the bachelor's buttons (i noticed the ones from last year reseeded and are now coming up), sweet pea... and planting the nasturtiums directly in their pots and keeping them inside for a bit. This is all before the last frost. I'm excited.
I've never had much luck growing flowers other than lobelia, morning glory, and nasturtiums. I guess the bachelor's buttons and love-in-a-mist grew well last year... i didn't really touch them, but they seemed happy. my butterfly flower bloomed, too. that was happy making.
I'm going to grow my tomatoes properly this year. I know that they need a lot more room now. and I should mulch the rows more heavily to prevent weeds. Boy is going to learn the meaning of physical labor soon. ;)
And I hate to admit this, but... i still don't have an almanac
i know, i'm a bad terrorist.
Tonight, I started some more, in seed trays and peat *pots* and peat pellets: Bush Tomato (Ace), Sweet Willian (extra dwarf mixed), violet Cathedral bells, lamb's ears (for boy's fondling pleasure), ipomopsis (maybe... can't remember)basil (greek spicy globe, butterfly flower, lovage, hyacinth bean vine (ruby moon), and red perilla/shiso. also--yellow pear/cherry tomatos, and italian roma tomatoes. and... dwarf morning glory (mixed colors). i also planted a purple pole bean or two.
The moonflowers are so big (sprouting second leaves soon) that I had to move them into larger cups (they were in a peat pellet flat/house). I've never had them so much as *germinate* before.
We need to ready the garden plot. I bought a soil test kit (boy's excited about it) so that we can figure out just what it is the soil needs. My tomatoes had some kind of blight last year which I think was magnesium deficiency. i can't test for that, but sprinkling some epsom salts out there won't hurt.
Soon, I can plant radish and raab directly outside. And then the parsley can move outdoors, followed by direct sowing of the bachelor's buttons (i noticed the ones from last year reseeded and are now coming up), sweet pea... and planting the nasturtiums directly in their pots and keeping them inside for a bit. This is all before the last frost. I'm excited.
I've never had much luck growing flowers other than lobelia, morning glory, and nasturtiums. I guess the bachelor's buttons and love-in-a-mist grew well last year... i didn't really touch them, but they seemed happy. my butterfly flower bloomed, too. that was happy making.
I'm going to grow my tomatoes properly this year. I know that they need a lot more room now. and I should mulch the rows more heavily to prevent weeds. Boy is going to learn the meaning of physical labor soon. ;)
And I hate to admit this, but... i still don't have an almanac
i know, i'm a bad terrorist.
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From one Flower Lover to Another...
Date: 2004-03-06 07:02 pm (UTC)I love to garden too. Isn't the feel of dirt great?
Foxgloves are my favorite but I like the dark... I think they have purple color ones. Also, I love holly-hocks: the dark pink ones.
You might want to try Lily of the Valley; although I didn't have much luck with that one.
Cala lilys are beautiful. Rununculus are so full and beautiful and the seed things look like a spider, but they only last one year and then that's it and they don't bloom again.
I also have fifth-generation peonies from my great aunt and her mother raised them for money... over 100 years ago. Now their children are in my yard and they're the really pretty deep pink.
If you want some, David can bring them back to C'Ville when he returns from Spring break next week [March 15th?]. If you would like them, they need a lot of sun.
P.S. Gardenias smell good. I just wish I could make a perfume from them.
P.S.S. How do you transfer sprout/saplings (grown from seeds) outside after they have sprouted without them dying? (I haven't had any luck at all.)
Re: From one Flower Lover to Another...
Date: 2004-03-06 07:26 pm (UTC)I don't really care how plants smell. I'm allergic to most of the plants I grow, especially the flowers. i try not to grow things i'm severely allergic to (roses, gardenias, soybeans), with the exception of aloe (it's useful, just not for me). I just need something to do and i like plants which tend to themselves (bachelor's buttons and love in a mist are great for that--they reseed quite well). I've never had luck with lilies, which is nuts since they grow like weeds. i should go steal some from
I harden off seedlings by carrying their cups/trays outside during the day (shadier spots, then sunnier spots, then full sun) and bringing them in at night. then i put them in a sheltered spot and leave them out overnight (when nights don't fall below 50). they stop growing for a bit, then perk up again. when the perk up and show no signs of distress, i transplant them.
i've had really good luck transplanting tomatoes and morning glories and lobelia. mosquitoes feed off lobelia, so i don't keep those near the door, even though the ones i grow are *deep* and *vibrant* purple and beg to be shown off. some herbs i just keep transplanting to larger containers until they're a good sized plant. i keep them in containers because some of them will grow rampantly and i'm pretty sure the landlord would be pissed off if he comes around to find no grass and lots of pennyroyal. ;)
some seeds i have to direct sow outside. not everything will transplant well.
if i'm really worried about something, i plant it in a container so i can bring it in at night or in bad weather. i use so few gallon jugs that i don't really have cloches available. if i did, i could use those to cover seedlings (in the ground) at night. i just realized that i have several vinegar and a couple distilled water jugs in the recycle bin. i should rescue those and cut them now, so that the vinegar ones can outgas completely.
do you like morning glories? i have some morning glory seeds from last year's vines. they're various colors--some are probably pink, some purple. i didn't grow heavenly blues (which i LOVE) last year. and, um, if you ever need spider plant babies, just let me know. i have stripey and solid spideys--two varieties of the stripey ones, though only one variety is large enough to produce babies.
Re: From one Flower Lover to Another...
Date: 2004-03-06 10:12 pm (UTC)Re: From one Flower Lover to Another...
Date: 2004-03-06 10:16 pm (UTC)Um... it's a good bug repellent?
Re: From one Flower Lover to Another...
Date: 2004-03-06 10:35 pm (UTC)Re: From one Flower Lover to Another...
Date: 2004-03-06 10:36 pm (UTC)And cleaner.
definitely not about flowers
Date: 2004-03-06 10:47 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-03-08 02:12 pm (UTC)If so, it'll be another poor tomato season. The poor orange-red fruits just hate war.