Topic: Marigolds and Petunias

[Moggle]

I sowed some marigolds and petunias last weekend, and they both germinated really well straight away.

They were both sown a little to densly in pots about 7cm or so.

The marigolds are getting all tall which is a bad thing isn't it? Should I pot them on now?

The petunias are teeny tiny how long before they should be big enough to pot on in to bigger pots.

Thanks, moggle

[Mrs Ava]

I would carefully pot the Marigolds on if they are getting tall.  Are they growing indoors as the heat will encourage them to grow rapidly and spindly.  As for the petunias, aren't they just the tiniest seedlings ever!  They seem to be weeny for ages and ages and then suddenly start to get bigger.  I usually painstakingly pot my petunias on when they are that small, I end up with a headache and all tense!  Good luck!

[Moggle]

Yes they are indoors, in my spare room. Should I try putting them ouside during the day or something like that?

The petunias are just too small to handle, I'll just have to wait a while.

Moggle

[aquilegia]

I wouldn't put them out yet - it is very cold!

My tomatoes were looking a bit leggy, so I moved them to a cooler window ledge. Make sure they have plenty of light still.

[Mrs Ava]

I agree with aqui, it is still very cold during the day, so a cooler room would probably be the best bet.

[john_miller]

Marigolds share one property in common with tomatoes- the hypercotyl (the plant part connecting the roots to the seed leaves) will produce adventitious roots when in contact with soil. Practically, this enables you to bury the seedling up to its seed leaves when you prick it out. This will also result in a better root system. If the plants are getting excessively tall and you bury the hypercotyl you might find it best to firm the soil down with a watering can rather than pressing it down with your fingers as you can easily break the hypercotyl.  

[Mimi]

Didnt know that John  will try it out when I plant out the Marigolds.

[Moggle]

Thanks EJ and John.
I will try potting them on nice and deep after work today if I can.
Moggle

[Ozzy aka Pothead]

Yo Moggle

My Marigolds have made an appearance in me wardie.. sowed them on Sunday and put them under me environlites with me other goodies and blinking blonking blink... they iz up already... got them in half cut loo roll tubes... also they will stay under the lights for a good 20hr a day cycle... so will lets peeps know how they come along... me toms and lettuce are up and doing their own thang and now I has me cloche am gonna plant them out this weekenders.... not me toms me lettuces... also have cornflowers and geraniums and delphins (?) in there... am very much into growing flowers now too.. and the gardens at the hospice... really did take my breath away... and the time just flew past.. I started voluntary work there and its a gas :)

Oz

xxxx

[kenkew]

Eh! Ozz. With your knowledge I bet you could grow cannibis? (You don't by any chance already do, do you?)

[Ozzy aka Pothead]

Yo Ken

I did reply earlier and I think it got "accidently" wiped off?  anyway the answer to your question is "NO"  ::) ::) ::)  ;) but thanks very much for the idea given that pot is now a class c drug , which means the old bill can no longer turn yer house over just for a bit of Bob.... or bang yer front door in,  which all in all is a good thang... but I will keep your suggestion in mind though, space mahn is all ya need ;)  I realy do hope that my post wasn't removed on the "alert a moderator" thang... cuzzz Id split...  freedom is a frame of mind mahn.... and I iz a freeeeeeeeeeeeebirdy I iz..... feel a song comming on so best split.. and hang looose:)

Oz

xxxx

[Moggle]

Hi all, thanks for your advice. I potted the seedlings on yesterday, so far so good. Had to chuck quite a few seedlings out, which was a shame, but I have no greenhouse, so there's only room for so many seedlings on a windowsill.

[john_miller]

Some advice about petunias, Moggle. Over here summers heat causes them to get very straggly (bedding petunias are tip flowering so the stems elongate to produce new flowers). I propagate mine in cells with dimensions roughly 2.5 x 5 cm. area. Once the basal rosette of leaves in adjoining plants start touching I move them outside, in to cold frames, simply to 'contain' the plantings in a defined area, where the cold will help to dwarf the plants. Even this young, petunia seedlings can endure quite a few degrees of frost, without damage, even if you don't wash it off (I found that out when one night was so cold I couldn't wash the frost off because the hosepipe, which I had left out in readiness, froze up!).
 This was taught to me by a old grower I met when I first came over here and was the method employed prior to the introduction of gibberellic acid. This is sprayed on the plants to dwarf them but, in my opinion and those of my customers, cold dwarfing gives a much more attractive plant.

[Moggle]

Excuse my ignorance but what's a 'basal rosette of leaves'? Is it just lots of leaves? How soon after sowing should they get that big? Mine are still teeny tiny.
Thinned them out a bit this morning with some tweezers in the hope that they will get a bit bigger.
Having no cold frame (no garden actually) would it be ok to put them outside on my sheltered balcony once they get to that size?

[john_miller]

  Oops, I was making assumptions, for which I apologise. A rosette of leaves is indeed a lot of leaves that form at the same position on the plant, in this case at the base.
  It might be easier at this point if you try pricking out small clumps of plants. Grow the plants out for a short period then you can prick out individuals when they are easier to handle.The first time I grew petunias I had to do that, for the same reason as you. To make matters worse I had sown them in the same seed trays as Nicotiana. This young they are identical (both are in the tomato family). Due to seeds bouncing around I had to move many plants around once they started differentiating!

[kenkew]

Regarding Marigolds; I'm still going to wait a couple of weeks before I sow. Last year I had loads and collected masses of seed. It will be interesting to see if they take after being kicked around the garage all winter.