CarolineC's Blog
CarolineC's posts about: seeds
Mar 19, 2008 | 6:50 AM PST
Tags: seedlings , seeds , malva zebrina , coleus
Here are some pics of *most* of my indoor plants and seedlings which I have started from seed for spring this year. All were started from seed, except for that succulent in the big white pot there. Many of them are still waiting to sprout.
I'm at the point now where I'm trying to acclimate some of the hardier plants to the outdoors, just to make room for my growing collection. It's getting quite crowded in here, but if I don't overdo it like this, I'll probably wish I had all summer. So, hopefully it will pay off. ;) Even though I am starting so many annuals, I have quite a few perennials too, so perhaps I won't have quite the same madness in here next year. I've also winter sown quite a few things, as well as direct sowed flower seeds, sugar snap peas, lettuce, spinach and Swiss chard.
The local nursery gave me some plain large and small black plastic pots. I felt that even though they were within my budget (free), they should still be pretty, so I painted them. I'm also sanding and painting that room, which is why there's dust all over the floor. ;)
This is a coleus that I pinched the heck out of at its growing points so that it would grow in more fully. The pic is kind of blurry. It has grown in since then, quite well.
One of my Malva Zebrinas has begun to bloom indoors!! Only 2 months after sowing. A marigold has bloomed too, but I don't have a pic of that just yet.
Feb 27, 2008 | 6:07 PM PST
Tags: seeds , seedlings , marigold , coleus , Epsom salt , tomatoes , daylilies , hosta , Spring Fever
Well, the marigolds are starting to set flower buds indoors just 4 weeks after sowing. Sheesh!! I had no idea they grew that fast. Oh well. It will be nice to have some pretty flowers indoors while I'm still waiting for spring.
Two of my coleus are starting to look very nice. They take quite a while to get started, but the longer they're around, the faster the new leaves grow. So they're growing at a decent pace by now.
I finally located some Epsom salt at the pharmacy, after have looked in several nurseries for it. 4 lbs. for 3 bucks. Not too bad. I've already put some on some of my more well established plants. We'll see if it makes any difference. So far, at least, it hasn't killed anything. ;)
I just sowed a bunch of tomato seeds-- beefsteak, cherry, Italian heirloom, and Italian market. Hopefully my crop will be better this year since I'm starting them so early, and I think I have a bit better of an idea of what I'm doing this year.
My one daylily which germinated about two months ago is really starting to take off. It must have been establishing a good root system in all of that time. Now sets of leaves are starting to poke through on the other side of the pot. And the new leaves seem much thicker and sturdier that the first set of leaves. I'm still waiting on the rest of my daylily seeds. Just because they haven't germinated yet, doesn't necessarily mean that they're duds. ;)
I have 58 hosta seeds. I most sincerely hope that all or most of them germinate and grow. I could so easily use 58 hostas around the yard.
What can I say?? I wish it was warm out! I'm so itching to get outside and move around at least a bit. But at least I'll be somewhat prepared this spring. ;)
Jan 22, 2008 | 8:43 PM PST
Tags: seedlings , seeds
As promised, here are some pics of my seedlings and makeshift light stands.
This is some grass that I grew indoors for my cat. I got the idea when I saw seeds in a catalog for "cat grass". It said that cats need a certain amout of vegetation to aid digestion. And after my cat ate 3 small Malva Zebrina plants to death, I decided to grow some grass for him. He isn't much interested in the grass, but my dog ate some from one of the pots when she had an upset tummy, so it wasn't a total waste. 
Leek seeds on the windowsill... haven't yet germinated. 
An assortment of pots and seeds. Some have seeds or seedlings in them, some are still waiting.
From left to right... Balloon Flower seedlings, Blue Flax seedlings, and two 3 month old Coleus plants. 
From left to right... Larkspur seedlings, a 6-pack of Hollyhock seedlings, a 4 week old daylily in the white pot, you can't really see it in the picture, but it's there, I promise, and two 1 1/2 month old Hollyhocks.
Some of you may be wondering why I'm starting seeds so early here in chilly zone 6b. Well... I have my reasons, no, really, I do. For one thing, I'm hoping that some of my perennials will flower this year. I'm even secretly dreaming that my foxgloves will bloom this summer, though being biennials, that is very unlikely. Another reason, some--not all--of the seeds that I'm starting are said to take anywhere from a few weeks to months to germinate. So, if they do take that long, then I may only have one or two sets of true leaves on them by the time Spring rolls around, even though starting them so early. With the annuals, I'm hoping to get a full summer's worth of flowers out of them, so I guess I'm erring on the side of having too many big plants to deal with indoors rather than having them bloom only to be killed by a frost a little while later. So... that's my story, and I'm stickin' to it. ;)
