Lalambchop1 said:Hi Julie. 
!!
So, I went out in hunt of any seed pods that escaped their natural predator, the dreaded determined deadheader.
@Pistil: I scavenged some fuchsia pods that had fallen onto the ground that should be ripe. I'll post again when I figure out who's ripe enough for adding, as there were six different species but all with varying degrees of potential ripeness.
I also managed to find some 'glamour girl' Phlox, loads and loads of hot lips salvia, agastache 'ava', agastache 'sunset' and a mystery penstemon (it was a gift from DH who very kindly planted it for me and then the tag went on walkabout). Once those guys dry out a bit I'll see how many seeds I actually snagged versus tricksy empty seed pods.
@luvsgrtdanes I've found that fuchsias sprout readily but they are easy to kill in the early stages if they get too much heat or moisture. They prefer to be cooler/dryer and the baby leaves seem to be easily burned by hot lights or contaminants like fertilizer or cinnamon powder. I use LED lighting and keep an oscillating fan on them so they stay cool and dry and they're much happier that way. I've had good success sprouting them in straight coconut coir, then move them into an airier mix later.
Oh and
@Pistil, you're so close (about 45 minutes away; I'm actually in Shoreline rather than Seattle proper), if it turns out I don't have much in the way of viable fuchsia seeds in time for the swap I can always let some pods ripen for you and should you ever be, oh, say, at Sky Nursery at a particular time, I could arrange to happen to be there as well. ;) I will take absolutely any excuse to visit Sky. Or hey I haven't been to Wight's in *years*, I should do *that* sometime. Then I can whip open my trenchcoat and say "PSSST! Hey kid! Wanna buy -- er, have -- some fuchsia seeds?" because I have definitely always wanted to do that.
