There are all different answers as to what "days to maturity" means. Days from planting seed, days from planting seedling, days from blossoming, days from fruit setting.....? Has anyone ever actually timed this in their own yard? What did you find?

It's different for different plants. For example 24 - 26 weeks for Cassia alata to go from seedling to blooming. 6 - 8 weeks for Ipomoea nil to go from seedling to blooming.

Anne, I think what texaskitty is asking is what is generally meant by "days to maturity." I wonder about that, too. If a seed packet says "90 days to maturity" does that mean 90 days from the time you stick the seed in the ground, or from the time it germinates, or what? I can't think of a specific example, but it sure seems like it takes a lot longer to harvest some things than what the seed packets tell you. This question might better be asked over in the edibles forum, since it seems mostly relevant to plants you plan to harvest. Maybe?

Yeah .. I kind of misunderstood .. though I'm thinking it means from seedling to harvest .. I don't think they are counting in the time it takes for germination.

I debated the edibles versus ask a question. Maybe someone with power will move it.

Well, I'm glad you asked it here, because it is something I've wondered about myself. And I don't spend a lot of time in the edibles since I mostly grow flowers, so I'd have missed it there.

That's why I decided to put it here, more readers. BUT, now it seems none of the veggie growers read this.

I always thought that 'days to maturity' means from the time you transplant the seedlings out into the garden.

It's an average in any case, so doesn't mean much. Varies greatly from zone to zone, with weather, night temps, and humidity (among other things) making a difference. All it really means is you will get fruit sooner from an early bearing type.

I think your right. I usually just add a month to the days to maturity, as my veggies are not precocious.

The general definition that we use in teaching our Plant Propagation classes for MG's is that for seeds grown in seed starters it is from the date that you transplant the seedling. For seeds that are directly sown in the ground/garden it is from the date of germination. And of course, we add the disclaimer that it does depend some on environmental conditions like weather, soil fertility, etc.

Okay, thanks. I'll have to add two months, I guess. My watermelon, which i planted in the ground march 15th, and are 90 days to maturity, are now 2" tall. It has been cool.

Yep, you might have planted those babies a bit too early for this wacky season we've had. Hope they jump up now that it's warm!

TK,

Depends on if it is transplanted or direct seeded. The general convention is days to maturity for direct seeded is from the time the seed emerges to first fruit. Transplants are generally counted from the time they are transplanted. Your milage may vary though. The plant growth depends on temperature, water, sun, soil, nutrients, and anything else you might vary. The numbers are a guideline at best.

Post message edit: My tablet crashed before I finished my message last night. When it charged this morning I finished the answer I had started. A couple of good answers before mine...

But thank you for the answer.

I agree that "it's only an average". Within one seed catalog, if that company trials most of the seeds they sell, they should be consistent with the exact microclimate in that vendor's trial spot.

Otherwise, you have to look at the other varieties in the same seed catalog, and guess that the middle numbers are "mid-season" varieties. Then you can guess that the ones with shorter DTM will mature that many days faster than THEIR middle numbers will be around that much faster in your yard, compared to YOUR middle numbers.

For species where "warmer means faster", like tomatoes, it might be possible to give more meaningful information using accumulated "degree days" or "heat days" - adding up the number of degrees above 50 F (or some other base temperature).

For example, if the mean temperature one day was 51F, add 1. If the avg temp was 60, add 10. ("Mean" being taken as daily max minus daily min over 2 ... not and hourly average or anything fancy.)

But no one does that! And of course it fails when the temperature gets hot enough to stress the plants.

http://www.weather.com/outdoor...

I'm thinking of writing an article on hardiness zones, days to maturity, and warming degree days. I think it would be a lot more useful to use warming days, so people need to understand the concept.

I would like to read that

Sounds like a good subject for an article!

I found that thread, and I'm lurking eagerly! I don't have any information to contribute since I didn't keep records the one year I grew tomatoes in coastal WA.

Edibles and Preserving forum:
Days to Maturity, Growing Degrees
The thread "Days to Maturity, Growing Degrees" in Vegetables and Fruit forum

Warming days sounds great, but I was just in Utah, planting my daughter's garden . . . they had many days in the 70's before I arrived, and two days where it snowed in the mid-day and went down close to freezing at night while I was there. Last Sunday the high was 81 and the low was above 60.

Even your warming days can't stop the plants from reaching a screeching halt in weather like that, right? Wish I'd been able to save two of the nice little tomato plants I'd raised from seed and 'imported' in my suitcase from Florida for their garden.

Jmho, each gardener needs to learn their personal growing space and plant a few different varieties to compare, then record accordingly. Each year will be different but if you record for long enough, a pattern will emerge, and good varieties will present themselves. Also we will be able to compare the 'days to maturity' on the seed packet to what actually happens in our own space.

I grow my tomatoes through the fall and winter here in FL. One cold front can make a difference of at least a couple of weeks in the 'days to maturity' number because a night in the low 40's brings the plants to a halt and also stops fruit set. It comes down to the vagaries of weather, I think. Sometimes our first 'cold' front here is in October, and sometimes it's in January.