Frozen/Wet Wintersown containers

14 years ago

Has anyone checked on their wintersown jugs lately? Mine were sown in mid December before all the heavy snows. I peaked at them during one of our few warm days in January. They had alot of water/ice on top. These were in a shady area & the bottom was frozen with ice, covering the drainage holes. I de-iced the bottom & moved these to the deck to hopefully allow more drainage, but I checked on them today & the same thing happened. I popped the tops, so hopefully they'll dry out, but do you think these will survive?

I'm planning to put out the rest of mine this weekend since I just got the rest of my perennial seeds in, but wondering if I should just put them in the garage instead & monitor the moisture level.

Is anyone else having this problem? It's been so cold & snowy this year we didn't get our normal freeze/thaw cycles.

Thanks!

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Comments (4)

highalttransplant
14 years ago
Hi Sherri!

What a difference a year makes, huh? Last year, I had sprouts by 2/21. I checked on my containers a couple of days ago, and yep, quite a few jugs were frozen to the patio. I don't think it is a problem, but I usually put a hole on the side of the containers, about an inch off the ground to help with that kind of situation.

I wouldn't put them in the garage, because they will germinate much sooner, and then you won't be able to stick them back out until the temps are staying close to the freezing mark or above at night. I wintersow because it is less work, but if you bring the containers in the garage, you might as well have grown them indoors under lights, because it will require the same amount of maintenance.

... just my 2 cents : )

Bonnie
sherri09
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks, Bonnie. I do hope they're still OK. This year has definately been colder, I'm sure it'll be another month before I see sprouts. I'll get the drill out & see if I can make some holes in the side, I never thought of that. I had poured off some of the water in Jan, but only did 2 containers, cause I realized, some of the seeds may floating in the water & I might be losing them. I left the tops off last night & they are drying out a little. At least there is no water sitting on top anymore.

I'll put the new ones outside, hopefully the worst of winter is over now..:)

- Sherri
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highalttransplant
14 years ago
Sherri, there shouldn't be any caps on the containers at all.

{{gwi:371191}}

How big are your holes in the bottom of the containers, and how many do you put in each container?
sherri09
Original Author
14 years ago
Here's the type of container I'm using. I put about 10-15 holes in the bottom with the 3/8 size drill. I like these harder containers. I tried some milk jugs last year, but my dog seemed to think they were a toy & they got beat up too much. Transplant time in my yard is always a trick. She is constantly sneaking up behind me & running away with the smaller pots... :)

I removed the lids on Friday & almost all the standing water is gone. The warmer weather yesterday helped a litte. I'll probably close them up again tonight. But some probably sat for a month with about 1/2 inch of water on top.