LOL! Me, too, Pat! I've seen them in pictures, but I want some of my own.

I really hope the seeds work out for you this year. I wish I lived closer, so I could drop off a couple of my seedlings!

Brenda

Ok, can I ask a dumb question and ask why you can't just plant them in the ground? I can't get most things to grow in pots but growing in the ground is different. I get that it's not the right time to plant them, but when is it? I lived up in the mtns too long...

What if you plant a few in the ground and cover them with hacked off soda bottles making your own mini green houses until the time is right?
Leslie

Leslie: Some people have a "touch" for growing seeds, I'm just not one of them. Oh yes, I have plants coming up that have reseeded themselves, no help from me. The Sweetpea thing has become a joke on me. I have tried for nearly 5 years now to grow them, just in case they ever decide to germinate I will be able to supply the entire state of Calif. with S.P.'s! I've seeded directly, as per instructions on packets, advice from fellow gardeners, I have amended, un-mended, planted shallow, planted deep, protected the beds from snails, slug, cats, etc. still no Sweet Peas. But every year I will try again & just maybe the seed/plant fairies will take pity on me and let the seeds germinate into strong, healthy plants with oodles of sweet, scented blooms.

Brenda, thanks for the offer, it just wouldn't be the same! This has become my goal now each year, plant them & either forget them or just in case they come up I will do the sweet pea jitter-bug! Pat

If mine live long enough to bloom, I'll be jitterbugging with you, Pat!

I have the same problem when trying to grow things from seed in my garden. I, too, have tried all manner of combos (as Pat stated above), but no luck! To be honest, I've never tried sweet peas specifically, but this year, I just had to try out my new indoor (uninsulated garage, actually) seed growing setup, and I wasn't disappointed! :)

Brenda

I can't grow seeds in a pot either, I did get some CA poppies to grow this year from seeds, surprised me! I got some free in the mail and all I did was sprinkle them out on the side of the house where we aren't doing anything yet for fun and then we covered it up with walkon bark so the 5 pets won't carry in the mud this winter. It's growing! Poppies grew wild all around me up in the mtns except at my property. I tried and tried to grow them on purpose and couldn't, so imagine my surprise that I just threw out the seeds and didn't even scratch these in and they're growing....

So I think that's great for you Brenda! I just might try seeds again then, LOL. Watch it won't work for me when I do it on purpose...

Ok Pat, I get it now. You know what they say about perseverance. That's the same thing I do, I never give up either. I've always done the same thing with potted roses. Just found out today it was never what I potted with, it was the size of the pots!!! Do you know how many roses I've killed and how much money I've wasted trying to grow in the wrong size pots??? ALOT! And for 14 years! All the time I lived in the mountains when I couldn't keep the deer from the roses in the ground.

I found a sign in a catalog I want, 'scuse the french though, it says "Don't Piss Off The Fairies". I'm going to put it out in the garden:) It will go right along with all the fairy lights and gazing balls and the dragon I have on order and the large 3 piece dragon arising through the dirt that I'm saving my money for now.
Leslie

Leslie...LOL Welcome to my world of trial, error and a whole lot of appropriate swearing! I love your new sign, may I borrow it? I saw one that read "Walk carefully, Fairies At Work!". I've got to get busy as my projects are piling up again, repainting some garden figurines to spruce them up a bit, have some new ones in progrss, mind is going 100 mph with new ideas, consequently, I tire easily and nothing gets started, worked on or finished. Manana!
Brenda, I got the SP seeds soaked and planted in cells, have them in my garden room aka dining room, where it's warmer, hopefully they'll sprout. I'm enjoying our nice gentle rain, easier to pull weeds, but getting yitsy to start planting. I'm going to see about getting some Milkweed seed to sow & see if I can entice some Monarchs to take up residence here. Also got a whole list of plants thru a site called Garden by Zip Code:
http://davesgarden.com/pf/zipbyzip.php?zip=96001&submit=Search

LOL Leslie, I love that sign, too! I'd say that Mother Nature pretty much had that covered this (COLD) winter. :D

I LOVE that about the poppies! I'm starting some Achillea seeds now (the little darlings are sprouting!), which I've already grown and loved in my garden. The gophers took them both out this year, though, so I'm going to try again. My Pookie cat brought me another gopher last evening during her final rounds in the garden. Good kitty!

I wish I would have saved some of my butterfly weed seeds to share with you, Pat! But I wasn't too hip on that yet. :D I have the A. tuberosa, though, so that may not be the appropriate one, according to the post over in the discussions area.

Love that zip code site!

Brenda

Oh, go for it on the sign, I found it in a catalog. I may make it myself instead of spending the money and buying it:) It strikes that right chord, apparently in you guys too, LOL.

I have to look up what a butterfly weed is from a butterfly bush. I replied on Pat's thread on the forum thinking I was on the conversation, Ooops:) Oh well... I don't always have both oars in the water at the same time, LOL. I claim it on the headaches and the meds, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it:) So when I say something off the wall you just think of that:)

I have some alysum seeds I got in the mail, I was going to try the same technique with them....worked pretty well with the poppies:)

I'll keep my fingers crossed then on your SP seeds Pat, maybe this time. Hope springs eternal and all that.

I thought that zip code site was great too, takes some guess work out. I'm going to try it out for some new plants.

Have a great day then.
Leslie