Thank you, Karen! You've done a fantastic job swapping! In all seriousness, I've loved hosting for you and everyone else in this group. It makes me look forward to future swaps!

I, too, am looking forward to spring! And don't feel bad if it takes you forever to make a decision on locations for things...I had a really tough time deciding last year where to put everything, and now I have more than quadruple the number of seeds to figure out and go through. It's an excellent problem to have, though.

(by the way, I had to chuckle at your comment that your jugs were ready...it took me the briefest of moments to realize that you actually meant for winter sowing )

Thanks for Hosting!!! :)

I started my winter sowing the other week! 56 containers so far!! :)

I wanted to be a good boy and not do too many swaps but they are too fun and I enjoyed myself! Just gotta figure out what to keep and squeeze in somewhere and what to give to friends and family! :)






~michael

I'm so excited for all of you, I can't wait for all of you to get your seeds! I think a couple of you might be getting them as early as tomorrow, but I think most of you should have them by Tuesday!

(If any of you don't have your seeds by Wednesday, let me know!)

Considering the snowstorm we just had and the fact we didn't get mail delivery on Saturday I'd be shocked if I got my package on Tuesday. If it gets here before next weekend I'll be happy.

@heavenlyfarm - I meant to ask you...do you happen to know/remember (or have a picture of) which cultivar this is?: "Hardy Hibiscus White w/ red center" (that you had in the seed swap)

Do you remember it looking like any of these?:

Wooo! That one in the middle is beautiful! Well they all are but I'm partial to the middle one. Hope it's that one. If so, I know what's going on my wishlist for the next swap. On another note.... Michael, do you have any dreamland zinnias left in your stash? If so, I would love to trade you for some. Zinnias are just as important as snaps.

Thank you jvdubb! Thank you HoosierHarvester! Thank you DogsNDaylilies! Thank you, everyone who offered seeds!

YOU'RE

Best of the coming and growing thing ,

There's not a emoticon for "you;re welcome" . So I tried to make my own.

I also wanted to say that if there are any seeds that I provided that one needs germination instructions, I'd be glad to assist. I think most I put in were easy though and no real special requirements.

Say, if anyone notices any poor germination from my seeds, I would really appreciate it if you came back and mentioned that, even more than a year from now. Then I can take that variety off my trade list until I replace them.

Also, if you got a packet from 2012 or earlier, and they DID germinate OK, and you happen to remember to mention it, that would even more cool. Thanks in advance!

(I don't think any of mine have dormancy requirements - mostly annual veggies or somewhat biennial Brassicas that will germinate if given any opportunity. If planted indoors so shallowly that they push up out of the seed-starting mix, push them in deeper or cover the hypocotyl (root-stem below the seedling leaves) with mix. Or let them stand there on their stilts looking silly until you plant them out.)

I was going through the seeds and all looking for a few minutes as time allows ,,
I know next time , ( making Notes ) To do a better labeling , and grow instructions sheet ,,

My printer the older one Failed , the new just set up , I am still adjusting the Microsoft , I had been doing small picture labels until the older printer broke ,,
I did not like saying that as an excuse but it happens ,,
I want to Thank you All once again for delightful seeds ,, Beautiful Butterfly garden and Green salads ,,coming up ,, Appreciation and , the true excitement are difficult to put into words ,,

DnD, can you remind me of the name of the other variety of Aster the gift seeds might be? Something red or fiery like "Torch"?

I remember "Dragon", but the box is at home and I'm goofing off at work.

Aster (Symphyotrichum novi-belgii 'Dragon') ?



http://www.northcreeknurseries... ?
http://www.perennials.com/plan... ? "Michaelmas Daisy"

Looking up "Asters" makes them sound very easy to grow and good cutflowers. maybe I'll expand my cutflower horizons beyond Zinnias.

RickCorey said:DnD, can you remind me of the name of the other variety of Aster the gift seeds might be? Something red or fiery like "Torch"?

I remember "Dragon", but the box is at home and I'm goofing off at work.

@RickCorey

I'm sorry that I just saw this or I would've happily given you the information to continue plant-searching at work! :biggrin:

The other variety it could be is 'Magic'.

Here are the two varieties side-by-side:




If you want to see more, you can go here:
http://bordines.com/plant-libr...

...then type in "aster" in the search box for common name. The two types of aster are right next to each other on the first line (if your window is maximized) and you can click on the "learn more" link. I hope that helps!

[edited to add tag]

@RickCorey (and everyone else, too)...remember that it's open-pollinated and could have been pollinated while still at the nursery, so it's possible that the plants will look very different. I can only tell you that the pod parent is one of the two above. Daddy plant might have been a different variety. No matter what variety they are, though, they should come out purple and look similar to what's above.

Thanks! And I remember they might have been pollinated by anything in the nursery.

I remember finding that one was an OP variety, but thanks for saying that both are OP varieties. The variation in my crop (that will be F2 if the seeds that formed in your crop are called F1) will suggest whether they were self or cross-pollinated.

If I cared, I could rouge out any unusual seedlings and plants, but I would be as interested in the crosses as in the original Aster!

I see "perennial" and somewhere I read that Asters are "weed-like". Both make me think there might be stratification requirements - do you happen to know? (I'll check my instruction sheet when I get home - fun to have Owner's Manuals for seeds! I KNOW I haven't lost those sheets just yet, but once I put the seeds away ... if I haven't scanned them, they might get lost.)

I used to just accept low germination when I didn't stratify, but now it's an excuse to make myself do some winter-sowing (or Deno-fridge-stratification).

You gave me enough seeds that I COULD just scatter-and-hope, but that seems disrespectful.

The asters I offered were these , I believe Rick has a few from me also Slow to germinate , prefer cooler temperatures , but not stratification ,
http://garden.org/plants/searc...
Mine that I sent are ready to grow ,

The first the link directs the page unto