Betja said:And worst of all, I really don't have any space plus our summers are now so hot that I pretty much stay indoors, so I lose a big chunk of my working outside to that excuse. And I continue to lose a lot of little seedlings each summer to excessive heat, even when they're under umbrellas -- bummer, and it seems to be getting worse each year!Wow, Becky! I did not know that came from a seedling! I thought that was the newest intro from a seasoned hybridizer. I cannot believe that is a dip either! The pattern eye and colors are so amazing and complex.
But I do manage to plant at least all the seeds I purchase, and each year I do get a few blooming seedlings from a batch I managed to get into the ground in previous years.
Here are pics of a few of this year's first-time bloomers whose seeds I know I purchased:
And my avatar pic -- my favorite seedling to date -
WILD DREAMS x FASHION ICON
(Also purchased from Dot in 2014 and bloomed for the first time in spring 2018)
And I also have a few FFE spring 2018 keeper seedlings from my own crosses; but as you can see, I'm certainly running a few years behind...
Betja said:All right, I confess -- I buy them, mostly now from Spunky1, Ahead and Jwwc. And each year I vow not to because I have a fridge drawer full of my own seeds; but then I see something(s) from newer introductions from one or all three of these guys and I just have to bid on it/them because I know I can't make that cross on my own at that point. And so it goes...I am in the same boat if this helps you feel any better. A fridge drawer full of seeds and I still look and bid on the LA. But I am really trying hard to limit my seeds purchase this year for now...
ShakespearesGarden said:Still not ever getting Facebook :harrumph: (dunno what that would look like as an emoji )
kousa said:When you mentioned that you had seedlings from your own crosses, I wonder how they performed for you and whether they bloomed close to what you envisioned the offsprings would bloom when you made the cross?I think one difference between us is that I'm so new, I try to keep expectations out of it. Almost like a science experiment where every outcome is something to learn from. Looking at my pictures in hindsight, I'd say I do best when I cross trait with trait. Watermark with a Watermark, Eye with an Eye, Very Late with a Very Late.
kousa said:This year, I had made some crosses specifically for certain traits - rebloom, edges, teeth, branching, mini, eyes, etc... I don't know how many of these crosses will bear offspring with these traits that their parents possess.I think these will match your expectations best, look-wise. Occasionally, you'll put two ornate faces together and get a plain looking "self", but for the most part, it looks like when I do this, I get something that looks like the parents.
kousa said:I also made some crosses that did not target any specific goals except that the pollen parent was the newest in my garden.I think these will be harder to predict, look-wise, but I think this is where innovation and surprise come from. I try not to expect anything with these. In 2017, I thought Chasing Your Dream was awesome, and for fun I used it with all my little reblooming plants... Stella, Happy Returns, Going Bananas... hoping for a reblooming plant that wasn't all yellow or gold. Almost everything that bloomed this summer was yellow, except this one here which bloomed in July and then again today for me: