I grow my veggies like basil tomatoes eggplants etc. in our greenhouse at church. We have just planted them as they tend to grow very quickly in there!! I should have plants ready for the 15th!!!

GGG

I've started some things outside already. I've got about 40 containers of things set out(some seeds from the generous GGG!)
Certain items are for the potager like cabbage,Italian parsley, cutting celery, blue breadseed poppy and fennel. I'm trying Mitsuba( Wild Japanese Parsley). It was on a traders list. I have no idea what its like, lol, but I figured why not try it. I still need to put some more containers out before winter is over.
I'll start my tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants in my garden window in the second half of March.
Remy

I'm am starting seeds in containers (as opposed to direct sowing) for the first time this year. So far I have a couple varieties of tomatoe, peppers, daisies, parsley, gourds, and thyme. I have assorted wildflowers in 200 gallon containers that I planted last summer. They are my 'experimental' bins. I will have to post a photo to see if anyone can identify the plants. I'll bet GGG can.

I haven't started anything yet but plan on doing the "planning" this weekend. Last year EVERYTHING that was planted was started from seed. I had flats everywhere! I will do the same this year too. I just get great satisfaction out all of the work. I also plan designs in my beds and section off the various vegetables with allysum.

No veggies yet, just perennials ( a ridiculous amount). Will start my sweet peas soon. I don't start tomatos until April. Nights are too cold. Michele

I'm gearing up to get started but WS has been a bust for me the past two years. We get too many thaw-freeze cycles in the early spring. The 60-70 degree temps for the last two months wouldn't have done much to enhance the WS experience either. I'm going to try a twist on the whole thing this year and see what happens. I will direct sew my seeds on the ground in small "clumps" and then cut the bottom out of the milk jugs to place over the plants as coloches (sp?) I hope to just stuff the jugs down deep in the dirt around the seeds. My hope is that having the plants rooted in the ground will prevent total loss in the event we have a deep freeze once they have sprouted. In the jugs they seem to freeze completely. If it works I'll save a little money on potting soil and can buy an extra plant or two with it when the greenhouse opens this spring.

Gurley, I had to read your post twice..lol...I envisioned huge, truck sized, 200 gal. containers.

Southshore, Do you have any pics of the Alyssum designed beds? I'd love to see that!

MeMo

MeMo, I would like to hear the results of you seed starting under the milk jug cloches. I have the problem of things being killed off by 80 degree temps dropping to 25 degree temps too. Some stuff gets to looking quite umkempt around here, as I don't whack it all off if it freezes. Some things just have to be ugly for awhile. But they are not dead. Seedlings would be dead.

I have flats of stuff planted, everything from alyssum to tomatoes to Swiss chard. One greenhouse with shade cloth only on it is full and I need to get the other cleaned and ready to start more next week. I don't heat the greenhouses, and I don't have to harden off my seedlings growing them out there.

I LOVE GARDENING!

Janie

Every year at this time, I get seed-starting urges. My daughter always has to remind me that it's way too early here (I'll probably always be on PacNW gardening time). Gotta wait for another 8 weeks. I am going to try planting a large container with lettuce and basil inside my basement slider. It gets lots of light, and I should be able to pick salads long before I could set plants outside.

For my garden, I only start things that I'll use a lot of: lettuce, basil, some annual flowers like marigolds and lobelia. There are so many people hereabouts who sell good organically grown starter tomatoes, peppers, etc that I have no trouble finding the varieties I want at a reasonable cost. Cheaper than seed for the number of plants I use, and I can try out different varieties each year.

I do start my own cukes, squashes, etc, but wait until soil is warm and plant directly (been using milk jug cloches for decades, works really well, both here and in the PacNW!).

Most of my perennials were either given me as starts or picked up at next to nothing at the end of the season. My daughter and I want to start some more varieties from seed this spring. Next year I'll try winter sowing of some perennials that I want and see what happens.

Dayle Ann

I've been planning and re-planning my veggies since I pulled my dead tomato plants last fall. I'm doing a few new tomatos and a few repeats, also a mesculun mix where I did just lettuce last year. I haven't actually gotten anything started yet though. I'm still working my way (very slowly) through my perennials. I still need to pick up some bushbeans though. I interplant them with my potatos because it it supposed to keep the bugs off of both. So far so good.

Well Dayle Ann...I'm thrilled to hear that you have used the milk jug coloches and that they WORK! Oh boy...I'm pumped up now. I have sooooo many seeds to plant!

Mrs G. Thanks for the tip on beans with potatoes. We have a huge problem here with potato bugs. I am going to try potatoes again this year. Maybe some of the varieties that Glenda has used. Watch them grow like crazy this year....I can't have them on my South Beach diet...ugh!

MeMo

Not yet for me. I have found that waiting until April 10 or so is better than the traditional Mar 10 for me, especially for tomatoes. My plants get too leggy if I do the earlier date. I have ordered my seeds and as soon as they arrive, I will plant the onion seeds and wait on the rest.

I am going to try the fan on the plants this year. I raise mine on the back porch under lights. I learned on one of the forums that if you use a fan to blow the plants that will make them sturdier.

I am going to try dahlias from seed and don't know what the requirements are for them yet.

I have to wait a few more weeks to start any of my seeds. I have put out a few milk jugs of seeds for winter sowing, but after reading MeMo's post, I will consider it an experiment and not count on the plants. I am going to start my impatiens and asparagus in a couple weeks. I am really itching to get my hands in the dirt.

Memo,

They are rather large containers. I keep them out behind DH's shop so that they cannot be seen from the house. This is my 'play' area where I keep tools, bags of stuff, assorted pots and experiments that I have going on. I currently have spinach and garlic chives in the middle that I can cut off for sandwiches and such.

During the active growing season I have tomatoes, beans and so forth in them. It is much easier to tend to the vegetables at waist high level and the bunnies and moles can't get to them.

The farthest container has a bunch of wildflowers that I cannot identify. I was going to take a pics to see if anyone can I.D. them for me but the frost has them looking a little crusty this morning. I want to move them out of there before it gets warm because I have asparagus underneath.
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