That is funny but I can understand it because I have sold seedlings I regret doing myself.

I hope she has enough for me to get one""

Fred, I will make sure to save GRC for you!

Thanks Ann, just let me know how much and I will get it to you.
Has been a little over a month since I posted photos of the seedlings, so yesterday I took time to take a few shots of the growth. They had got burned some from the couple if 24* nights a few weeks ago but the have outgrown most of the damage. The high temps the last couple of weeks has been neat 80* so they have recovered quickly. They are now 4.5 - 5 months old and if the winter stays like this I will see some bloom in March at 7 months old. I used a can of spray paint for comparison.
Again this is the dips.

Also dips

Again the Tets

Also Tets

Fred, those seedlings look wonderfully lush and so healthy! And the tets are REALLY flourishing! I can't even imagine all the beauties you must compost each year, and hopefully I'll learn to be tough at some point too. I'm breeding for teeth so at least I can probably eliminate quite a few right off -- except I just know that at first I'll ooh and ash over each one and think I couldn't possibly destroy it. But I'm sure the reality of yard and table space (like I have none!) will win over at some point.

Can you tell us what month you actually started planting all those seeds? I need to try to form a schedule in my mind for all this. This last year was a mess for me and I didn't actually start planting until early December, but I do have more than 70 little (very little!) guys that are starting to put up a leaf or two. So I guess I should maybe start with the half-strength blue Peters now. We're supposed to be high 60's to low 70's for the next week, so I'm thinking we'll have an early spring. Gosh, I sure hope we get more rain!

WOW, amazing Fred!! 80 degrees in January. We've had several 70 degree days but my plants are just beginning to put up a little new growth. I'm headed out, it's 59, to start my annual cutting and cleaning out of all 1500 or so pots. This will take several days. It's suppose to be in 60's all week. I'm just so afraid that the trees will get killed back like they did about 4 years ago when we had this kind of weather in March, not January!!!! Then in April it got down in teens and didn't get about 25 for 4 days or so. It killed many many trees, including a 10 year old Jap weeping Maple that was a treasure. It died!! It was covered but nothing helped that kind of cold.

Your seedlings are gorgeous!!! I just bet you do have blooms in March. Is this normal for you?? I, too would like to know about the time you started your seeds.

I have just completed planting about 1000 seeds in 475 cups in my unheated greenhouse. The first were planted about 2 weeks ago and I still don't have any little green heads sticking up. I did surgery on one seed Saturaday. It had grown it's embryo(the little white growth) and I figure it was about ready to break through the outside seed skin and start growing. So, I know atleast that seed was doing something!! These first seeds I planted about 400 of them are actually from 2008, so, this is a really big test to see just how long a seed will keep and still grow. The rest that I planted, about 600 are from 2011. So, I'm not a bit patient, but for now, I'll just have to be.

I soooo!! look forward to seeing all your great photos in March. By then, I'll be chomping at the bit, just green with envy, because I can't wait to see a bloom!!!

OH, did I say, I'm not patient!!!!! All this sunshine is killing me!!!

Blessings, Mona

Fred your seedlings are looking great!!

I try to start my seed about the last week and then they will be ready to go in the ground starting the last week of August, all will be in the ground by Sept. 15. They normally start blooming around mid April but this year it could be earlier because of very little winter so far. Feb. will be the deciding month. This is a six month old seedling from last year.

Do you plant your seeds directly in the ground, then? Somehow I thought you planted them in flats or something and then later transplanted them to the ground.

Whatever he does, by looking at that six month old seedling settting a scape, he does it quite well!!! At six months my seedlings will be lucky to be the size of a pencil. I'm hoping that I can do better since I've found out about using alfalfa pellets to increase growth.

Now, if I can just get some of my seeds to germinate. Patience, patience, patience, oh heck!! Just hurry up seeds!

Blessings, Mona

Betty, he left out a part. He gets the seedlings into the ground starting end of Aug. but he starts the seeds in the seed trays before that. I believe he starts his seeds the last week of June and his last seeds are planted by the end of July.

I understand your impatience Mona, I just started some seeds on Thursday and already I am checking to see if any germinated. I had DH help me bring my grow table in from the garage today, I want to make sure that I'm ready when they do!!

My babies are no where near as far along as Fred's but thought I'd post some photos. I put a 12oz coke bottle next to them so you get an idea of the size.

Here are a couple of photos with seedlings that have increased to 3 fans. They are quite small but are obviously growing. Kind of wish they would stay as single fans and get bigger instead of staying small and increasing





I do have a lot of Sev and a few dormants, but the ones this size I would guess are the Ev ( a whole lot bigger)

Yahoo!! I just won "Lillian's Alabama Sunrise" and I'm just sooo happy!!! After seeing Fred's goregous seedling that has this as a parent, I wanted one really bad. I got it for a really good price and am so thankful for the price and the plant. I won Italain Kaleidoscope, it was Freds, earlier and was on cloud 9 about that and now this one, too. I think those two will make a pretty baby maybe even a lot of pretty babies!! I bet Fred may already have some of these babies growing.

Happy dreams for me tonight. Blessings, Mona

Michele, your seedlings look great! Do you use regular fertilizer, or do you put something special on them to get to the point of three fans already?

Congrats on your Lily Auction wins, Mona! Those should be fantastic for you!

I set seed for five weeks, all of May and the first week of June. By the first or second week in June I will start collecting the first seeds and putting them in the fridge for three weeks to chill. I will collect seed every day so the chill time will vary some. By the 1st or second week of July the first seeds will be ready to plant in trays. I try to plant 800 seed at each planting, (this is enough for one bed) I will plant another 800 the following week, and the last 800 the week after that. The seeds stay in the trays four to five weeks then are put in the ground starting with the first 800 planted in the trays, so I am planting in the ground for three to four weeks. My goal is to have all in the ground by Sept. 15. All these dates and time lines can vary a little depending on the previous winter and present weather. I use a professional seed starting mix to start the seed in the trays, mostly peat moss and vermiculite, "no fertilizer". Seeds have enough energy stored to germinate, they will get a mild water soluble fertilizer the last two weeks in the trays.

Betty, what I have been using to fertilize the seedlings is Miracle Grow all purpose fertilizer (24-8-16), the one that goes in the hose end sprayer. I've been using that because that's what James Hall buys to use and I just go ahead and spray mine while I'm spraying his. I do have a water soluable fertilizer that is a 25-5-10 that I may use later on. It's a little high on the nitrogen but that's all I could get at the time.
The other things that are used are mixed in the bed and/or topped dressed; chicken litter, slow release fertilizer, alfalfa pellets, and lime ( to keep the Ph neutral). I did also put a little bit of milorganite. I wouldn't purposely try to make them increase at this point.

Thank you both so much! This really helps me with planning for this year. Last year was the first and I was just trying anything that was in bloom and I had something like 23 crosses and ended up with close to 300 seeds, but this year I'm going to concentrate on my toothy goal. I'm going to have to consciously NOT try too many crosses, though, because of space constraints and the fact that I'll need to carry over this year's crop of seedlings till next year if I want to see blooms. But hopefully this year I'll get more on your schedule so maybe I'll see this year's seeds with blooms next year instead of having to carry the seedlings over for a year with no blooms.

I have 2 babies with their tiny green heads sticking up today!!! The first of many to come, I hope. Lets see, it's been 17 days today on that batch. They were in the first days planting. These were 3 year old seed. No bragging yet, Two out of about 400 is a long way from feeling ok after 3 years of not getting my seeds planted. So, we will see.

Blessings, Mona