Tangled Branches: Cultivated
happenings in and around my zone 6b gardens in northern Virginia and in central Virginia
Thursday, January 18, 2007
So Much to Sow
Well, I decided to get down to the business of ordering seeds, and then thought it might be a good idea to see what I already had on hand. So I spent an hour (!) going through all the packets I could find stashed in various places, and recording them in a spreadsheet. I did the spreadsheet so I could sort and find things again, but when I sorted by genus and species I learned what my favorite plant is. Basil. Specifically, Cinnamon Basil. I have remnants of 4 packets of Cinnamon Basil, out of a total of 12 remnant packets of Basil seed. The only one of the 12 that I didn't like, wouldn't grow again, and tossed in the trash was 'Siam Queen'. I didn't like the compact plant habit and I didn't like the flavor. I do like Thai basil, but just not that one. My other personal favorite plants apparently are Morning Glories (6 packets), Tomatoes (5 packets) and Cosmos (5 packets). The Morning Glory statistic is misleading though, because 3 of them are minute quantities of seed I bought on eBay a couple of years ago. And one of the other ones is unopened. 'Grandpa Ott's' looks just like the 'Star of Yelta' that comes up every year by itself, so why plant more? The oldest seed (on which I could find a date) was from 1999, and that was a packet of, um, Cinnamon Basil.
Has anybody reading this (in the US) ever ordered online from Chiltern in England? I was looking for a new source for 'Giants of California' Petunias, and I noticed that they have it. A bit pricey, but it's a plant I really like and neither Burpee nor Select Seeds has it this year. I also found it at Crosman's Seeds, which I have not heard of before and their web site doesn't inspire confidence.
I'm thinking of trying some winter sowing this year. I'd never heard of this technique until reading about it at Cincinnati Cape Cod last year, but it sounds like an economical way to start a lot of plants. Next step in the seed spreadsheet is to mark which ones might be suitable for winter sowing.
Labels: seeds
10 Comments:
I, too, enjoy growing flowers from seed.
What are some of your personal favorites???
One of my favorites is the sunflower. I have tried a wide variety. My family, the neighborhood and all the local goldfinches enjoy the sunflowers. Great blooms for the summer's finale.
Thanks for linking to the wintersown site.
'look forward to reading your blog.
I am happy to read I'm not the only one who uses a spreadsheet to keep track of all their seeds!
I did some winter sowing last year. I wasn't particularly impressed with it. I would use the technique for perennials but not for annuals (last year I did mostly annuals). They were only just barely ahead of seed grown in the yard annuals which means there wasn't much bloom until late July- too late for me. Perhaps if I had transplanted them sooner? In any case, I much prefer to sow them in the house where I can enjoy the process and get ahead of the weather.
Oh- I forgot to mention that I have ordered from Chiltern before and did not have any problems. It's been a few years though so i can't recall how quick they were etc.
shellseeker: Probably the majority of the seeds I start are plants that don't usually turn up in garden centers. Things that are old-fashioned - like floppy old sparse petunias, unfashionable colors of coleus (Rainbow mix), or things that get too tall for packs or 4" pots - like Cosmos bipinnatus, Cleome, Nicotiana alata. I haven't had a sunny enough place for sunflowers for many years, but this year I do, and I plan to grow a lot of them.
carol: How did we ever get along without computers?!? Way back in the 80s before we got our first home computer, I talked my husband into letting me use his computer at work (on a weekend) to do my seed order spreadsheet. Things have changed just a bit since then...
anonymous: I was kind of thinking the same thing about winter sowing - better for perennials. But I wondered if annuals that like cooler weather would also do OK. Offhand, Mimulus and Sweet Peas come to mind. I'm probably going to end up direct-seeding a lot of annuals this year. I went ahead yesterday and orderd a few things from Chiltern after reading favorable comments on Garden Watchdog.
Oh, and the prices on Chiltern looked very high when I was just browsing, but those prices included the VAT tax. When you get to the shopping cart, and specify that you want the order sent to the US, they remove the VAT from the price.
I would agree re: winter sowing being a little better for perennials since you're more prepared to wait for them to develop. That said, I had no complaints about the speediness of the annuals I did grow: Calendula, 2 kinds of amaranth, 2 kinds of sunflowers, verbena, cerinthe and nasturtiums. (And the root systems on those winter sown perennials... WOW.)
Blackswamp_Girl: I so admired your amaranths last year that I have some on my wish list this year. Did you start them all by winter-sowing?
I purchased the majority of my seed in the fall while they were on sale, and stored them in a cool, dark place. All I had to get this year were a few herbs and 2 varieties of hot pepper. We're doubling our garden area this year, and trying many new veggies we've never grown before!
I don't think winter sowing would work up here in Zone 5, especially considering school was cancelled the last 2 days due to bitter cold! I do start the ones that I can in the house using a growlight. When it gets a little warmer, they will go out into my patio greenhouse.
Well, good luck on your planting and harvesting this year! ~ Carrie
Carrie, I couldn't possibly ever get organized enough to buy seeds in the fall ;-)
I always started my seeds in the basement in the past and then hardened them off in the cold frame, but I'm planning to do many more this year (we have a big new area to fill). So it's either buy more lights or try a different technique. But I'm not real enthused about getting outside in our recent cold weather. Nothing like the midwest, but we're weather wimps here in Virginia.
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