Sow.....what have you sowed?

[aquilegia]

OK then. How's £1 per seedling sound?  ;D ;)

[aquilegia]

[Doris_Pinks]

They are nicotianas, and I reckon a magnifying glass will be needed!!  Blimey that would cost me about a hundred squidleys........maybe I shall have to do it myself :'(

[Gardengirl]

I am sooooo pleased.  I tried sowing toms from seed this year for the first time.  Thought they were not going to germinate - two days ago nothing, today 8 seedlings all about 1 inch high ;D  Also my nasturtiums have come through.

As for pricking out - love it - very therapeutic.  Have pricked out about 200 busy lizzies, 30 cineraria, 24 linum, 18 cleome and plenty more to do ;D :D

One question:  When do you start to feed the toms.  Is it when the first trusses start to appear or before ???

[Doris_Pinks]

Another that likes to prick out, am I alone here?!! :-\

[Mrs Ava]

No DP, I am with you.  I start with all good intentions, but get very frustrated when doing it.  I now try to only sow a few things per tray, easy with the bigger seeds, impossibly with the smalleeees.  Hate it!

[aquilegia]

One question:  When do you start to feed the toms.  Is it when the first trusses start to appear or before ???

when the first flowers appear. You want to feed the fruit as it's developing, not the leaves.

[Gardengirl]

Thanks Aqui :)

[Moggle]

I am so happy, all of my expensive tomatoes came up, and now are getting second leaves. ;D
Peppers and chillis coming along nicely, with chillis getting second leaves too.
Will be potting on this weekend, along with sweet peas, I'll have a spare room full of little plants :)

[kenkew]

Patricia S.... I've just seen your bit about 'bush' sweet peas. You create the 'bush' by careful pinching off of the side shoots that are going the 'wrong' way. You will still need to nip out the leader or it will gallop away turn 'blind'. This will give you little or even no flowering side shoots.
PS: Done a bit of searching and come across 2 s'pea types that are more prone to bushing than the norm. They are Lathyrus Latifolius and L.Vernus. The former is the 'ever lasting perennial. Bot will form better bushes than the 'ordinary' s'pea.

[Mimi]

Speediest showing so far is the Amaranthus.  Sown on Sunday,popped into propergator and seedlings up last night :o about 50 hours. Not bad eh?

[kenkew]

Not done them this year. Just sown 100 sweatpeas, 5th variety of Tom's, Hot chilli's, brussels, more white/red cabbage, spring onions, Chinese lanterns and getting set for sweet corn.
(sweatpeas?..well, it was hot in there.)

[Mimi]

Ken, I got some chinese lanterns seeds from Germany, but cant translate instructions. Can you help out?

[kenkew]

I know the gen. stuff but will get you more detailed info before the day's out.

[Gardengirl]

Ken - thanks very much for the info on my bush sweet peas.  If they do ok I will post a photo :)

[aquilegia]

More plants are saying hello to the sun... One Echinacea has awoken, my verbena now has its first seed leaves (before they were just roots), my pre-germinated carrots are developing roots (although the parsnips have yet to do anything), chives are coming up, the salad bowl (radishes, rocket, lettuce) has something happening (I think it's the radish seeds that came to the surface and have roots growing - I only sowed them on saturday - I gently poked them down again).

My tomatoes have true leaves now, so they'll be pricked out at the weekend. I was going to do it yesterday, but when I got in from the stables, I was too tired and the weather was too yucky to go outside again!

The leeks are starting to form those blobby bits in the end. Although they are very spindly still (only babies really!)

And finally, all I'm waiting on is everything in my mini greenhouse (about six varieties of aquilegia and my wildflowers), and the bronze fennel and delphiniums that I sowed on Saturday.

:D

[Garden Manager]

We are all sowing away, but have any of you thought about the dreaded pricking out time?? Or am I the ONLY one who absolutely DETESTS  doing it! >:(

Why do you detest doing it Doris?  It is supposed to be part of the funof doing it, though i myself find it a little stressfull, particularly if it doesnt go right (or if the leaves are small, the seedlings are crowded etc). When it goes right it can be enjoyable but often i worry too much about damaging them or making a mistake.  You are not entirely alone.

I wouldnt not do it for the world though, growing plants from seed is wonderfull , if a little stressful at times. ;D

PS: most of my sweet peas have now germinated. I have now put them out in my minigreenhouse rather than indoors, now the weather is warmer, if only to make room for other less hardy things.

[kenkew]

To Mimi: Cape gooseberry. Physalis Edulus.
This bit is from the packet; Sow Feb-April. Plant out 1/2 May-June. Harvest Sep-Nov.
"Sow in a propagator under glass at 15-18 ⁰in good compo. Transplant into 3" pots and later into large pots in the greenhouse border or one plant per grow bag."

My added bit; Sow seeds individually or well spaced in a propagator. Put glass or a lid on it. (Will also grow from cuttings.) When the seeds poke through, remove the cover. Don't plant where you've had spuds or tom's as the cape is prone to the same diseases. I start sowing now and plan to have them in a cold frame end of April and permanent by the end of May. (Yes, outdoors. Might try them in my plastic thing at the plot, too.) I've grown them in bottomless pots sunk in the ground with manure under that. They need support as they grow and sun and shelter is best but with a good plant you should get a few pounds of fruit. Cook it or eat raw. Yummy. Pick when they are a golden yellow. If they're outdoors and the first frost is due, if they're in pots, get them under cover. If not, take off any fruits showing any yellow and leave them in the husk on a window sill to ripen. Have I missed owt?

[Mimi]

To Kenkew:  :-*Many thanks. can get them start today.  Just one more thing?  Are they perennial ???

[kenkew]

I think they originate in South America where they might well be perennial but treat them as an annual over here.

[Mimi]

Okey dokey.  ;)