Started 30 flowers in a flat..pot or plant in garden? - Page 2

greyghost · March 21, 2015

Luigiwu,
Be sure and check out the Senior Gardener's "Archives"---it's a compilation
of his blogs over the last 10 years or so. I should stop looking-I almost
impulse bought some "kiss me first" (or something like that) Sweet Corn
this morning from High Mowing.

Zinnias are fairly large seeded and grow very quickly. I usually start mine
mid or last week in April for planting out around Mother's Day. They do great
direct seeded although I think it's better to start inside if your soil is compacted
or the area is weed-challenged. They germinate very quickly, too. Great for
kids to grow because of the large seed and the speed at which they grow!
Check out Magellan for large flowers on short plants or the Benary Giants
found in many catalogs. Also, easier to find decent varieties on local seed racks
than petunias.

shelleybean · March 21, 2015

I agree zinnias are one of the easiest flowers to grow from seed. I started mine indoors and thinned to single plants this week. I will take them out to harden off the second week of April. If the mildew doesn't get too bad, they should last me until almost Thanksgiving. I have little vases in about every room in the house for them.

luigiwu · March 22, 2015

success! well, cross your fingers, there is the tiniest signs of life! I started these petunias on the heat mat (its a pack of Burpee Royalty Mix) I bought to "try." Can I take them off the heat mat now? Do I still have to leave the lights on 24/7 for the petunias? Also should I take the saran cover off or change it out to some other clear dome?

Good to know that about Zininias! If I can get them started outdoors that would be even better as hardening off is always stressful for me... I was hoping to put them in cells and stick them in a ziplock baggies with holes and just put them outside?

I started some Shasta Daisies (5 teeny seeds dropped with tweezers into 1 of 72 cells) today indoors.

I have no idea how successful I'll be with any of these flowers. This is only my 2nd year starting from seed though I did really well with veggies, toms and peppers last year... Ideally I would like to dense sow everything like nctomatoman does for nightshades but I don't think most flowers are up to that kind of handling...

greyghost · March 23, 2015

As soon as I see a good bit of germination, I take wrap off petunias. They can also come off of the heat mat at that time. You'll find that they'll grow a bit each day. When they get some size to them, quarter to half inch diameter, a dilute
fertilizer (dilute, ~1/4 strength Miracle Grow, fish/kelp, etc) and growing on in
cooler conditions will be fine.

For zinnias, I'd either direct sow when frost is no longer a danger or start
in small pots, etc 2 or 3 weeks before then. You could either keep the pots
under lights or out in the sunshine and pull them in if a frost threatens.

I've read that zinnias, if grown in pots and that, when set out, experience root disturbance often will not produce fully double blooms. I have no idea if that's
true, and I don't think I've experienced that, but I always think about it when
seeding them and take care to either not seed into too small a cell or to let plants
get root bound before I can plant them. For that reason, I try to seed them about 3 weeks or so before I can plant them. They grow so quickly that if you're
able to keep the area watered well and weed free, it might be easier to direct
seed after the temperatures warm up a bit.

greyghost · March 23, 2015

A couple more things about zinnia, you can seed them later in early summer and have a great display later in the season. Plants can rejuvenated by cutting back
and dead heading blooms will promote more blooming.

March 21, 2015	#17
shelleybean Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Virginia Beach Posts: 2,648	I agree zinnias are one of the easiest flowers to grow from seed. I started mine indoors and thinned to single plants this week. I will take them out to harden off the second week of April. If the mildew doesn't get too bad, they should last me until almost Thanksgiving. I have little vases in about every room in the house for them. __________________ Michele

March 22, 2015	#18
luigiwu Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: ny Posts: 1,219	success! well, cross your fingers, there is the tiniest signs of life! I started these petunias on the heat mat (its a pack of Burpee Royalty Mix) I bought to "try." Can I take them off the heat mat now? Do I still have to leave the lights on 24/7 for the petunias? Also should I take the saran cover off or change it out to some other clear dome? Good to know that about Zininias! If I can get them started outdoors that would be even better as hardening off is always stressful for me... I was hoping to put them in cells and stick them in a ziplock baggies with holes and just put them outside? I started some Shasta Daisies (5 teeny seeds dropped with tweezers into 1 of 72 cells) today indoors. I have no idea how successful I'll be with any of these flowers. This is only my 2nd year starting from seed though I did really well with veggies, toms and peppers last year... Ideally I would like to dense sow everything like nctomatoman does for nightshades but I don't think most flowers are up to that kind of handling... __________________ Subirrigated Container gardening (RGGS) in NY, Zone 7! Last edited by luigiwu; March 22, 2015 at 11:57 PM.

March 21, 2015	#16
greyghost Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: southeastern PA Posts: 760	Luigiwu, Be sure and check out the Senior Gardener's "Archives"---it's a compilation of his blogs over the last 10 years or so. I should stop looking-I almost impulse bought some "kiss me first" (or something like that) Sweet Corn this morning from High Mowing. Zinnias are fairly large seeded and grow very quickly. I usually start mine mid or last week in April for planting out around Mother's Day. They do great direct seeded although I think it's better to start inside if your soil is compacted or the area is weed-challenged. They germinate very quickly, too. Great for kids to grow because of the large seed and the speed at which they grow! Check out Magellan for large flowers on short plants or the Benary Giants found in many catalogs. Also, easier to find decent varieties on local seed racks than petunias.

March 23, 2015	#19
greyghost Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: southeastern PA Posts: 760	As soon as I see a good bit of germination, I take wrap off petunias. They can also come off of the heat mat at that time. You'll find that they'll grow a bit each day. When they get some size to them, quarter to half inch diameter, a dilute fertilizer (dilute, ~1/4 strength Miracle Grow, fish/kelp, etc) and growing on in cooler conditions will be fine. For zinnias, I'd either direct sow when frost is no longer a danger or start in small pots, etc 2 or 3 weeks before then. You could either keep the pots under lights or out in the sunshine and pull them in if a frost threatens. I've read that zinnias, if grown in pots and that, when set out, experience root disturbance often will not produce fully double blooms. I have no idea if that's true, and I don't think I've experienced that, but I always think about it when seeding them and take care to either not seed into too small a cell or to let plants get root bound before I can plant them. For that reason, I try to seed them about 3 weeks or so before I can plant them. They grow so quickly that if you're able to keep the area watered well and weed free, it might be easier to direct seed after the temperatures warm up a bit.