dem_pa, thank you so much!!! I am glad you are happy :) I hope to host in the future after this website gets settled and I have more free time again!

Also, I got my seed list thanks to everyone who showed me how!!! thank the lord! At least I have that! I am still waiting for the actual lists on here tho and to make it more garden friendly! I emailed them yesterday with my complaining and list of issues and all I got was "did you have trouble getting your new account confirmed?" LOL

Quick Update before bed!!(working at 4am is gonna kill me tomorrow! lol)

PACKAGES SENT OUT TODAY:

~~midwestfarmwife

~~ibartoo

~~Ruby_Dog

~~Naturegirl

~~Wilsha

~~Diknownana (Di)

~~ SkyBlue52 (Susan)

Will be sending out the rest over the next two days!! Have a great night everyone and Happy Winter sowing :)

~Michael

heavenlyfarm

naturegirl I am interested in swapping with you. I lost the sheet of paper but I'll be getting back with you. You had some Echinacea's I don't have. I also have foxgloves, Coreopsis Mahogony Midget, Peony Poppy Purple and Red, a few different Echinacea. You have a ton of stuff. We can email private too if you want. I am not as organized as everyone else on my swap list. I am trying to get it organized now. You've got so much stuff you may not be interested in my stuff, but what I will offer you will be good. I also have brand new red Larkspur, sorry all the Delphiniums are gone, also have a Larkspur Hyacinths mixed colors brand new 2015, I'm very excited about. It's late but wanted to get a quick note out to you. Micki

Also, just wanted to say Michael you are a very mature 22 year old, I've read your profile and you're doing a fabulous job on this swap. Clap Clap Clap

I like big containers, anyone have any containers ideas? What small ones have you used? Kinda scared to use those. Micki

Thank you Michael! I'm so excited :)

I've used plastic shoe boxes from Menards that are clear.

micki777: I think you saw a copy of someone else's trade list that I posted a few entries up from here when they were afraid it had vanished in the site changeover. It may be midwestfarmwife who has the seeds you are interested in trading for. I don't have any extensive list posted at GW....and never did.

The plastic bear winter sowing container makes me smile ! He's cute.

Micki777, Thank you!! I try to be lol I sometimes take things seriously for 23(must not have changed that on my profile) and worry about things like money, moving out and my health! (Did I mention I have anxiety? lmao). I am trying to be more relaxed with my money situation and just save without worrying about every last penny I spend or save. I have plenty of years ahead of me and I'm okay with the gardens right now and if I move, I could always start from scratch again and thats a neat thing about gardening! :)

PACKAGES SENT OUT TODAY:

Herbal

Hibiscusfan

KatJaqu

Molanic

The rest will ship tomorrow and thats that! Can't wait to hear when you guys get them and any plans you have :) I will update again tomorrow and will probably be more talkative! I'm off to finish these last 6 and take a nap!! I'm EXHAUSTED!

Naturegirl, One last thing. Can you tell me your experience with Livingstone Seed Company? I saw alot of packets from them that looked irresistible!! So I'm debating looking for some packets from them!!

Thanks

~Michael

heavenlyfarm

Thanks Michael! I can't wait for the seeds to get here.

I'm not liking this new setup on here. I had a few minutes the other day and thought I'd get on here and see what was up with everyone and YIKES! I used those few minutes to get my profile set up and that was it. And still not sure if its right or not. I'm on vacation next week so I guess I'll worry about it then.

Micki - I do most of my wintersowing in the ReaLemon Lemonade jugs. They are smaller and not as overwhelming as the big gallon jugs. I can do one of those in the evening when I get home from work or do a bunch on weekends. It just works easier for me. I have to give everyone credit that uses those gallon jugs. I think it would be too stressful for me.

Take care all and Happy Gardening!

Di

as for covering seeds. I was taught seeds must make contact with soil and a good way to do that is to use chicken grit and lightly sprinkle over the top. micki

heavenlyfarm: I have had good germination and growth with the Livingston Seed. A local garden store carries lots of their seeds and discounts them at times so I've always purchased them at that store. I have never ordered their seed so I don't know about that.

nature girl, I actually found their site and it looks like they only sell to stores lol so my hopes are dashed!!! I already looked at kmart and walmart so perhaps home depot or lowes when I get a chance. I live in a small town so those places aren't near by (neither is walmart but its WALMART! lol)

Anywhos the last packages are shipping this morning :) I don't have my list with me but it is everyone else that I didn't mention yet! As for the rest of my day, I am feeling like winter sowing, staying in bed, and reading my carol klein book is good enough for me! The pictures in the book are too die for, they make me so hopeful for Spring and longing for those new flowers and seedlings! I hate this time of year where it seems it's just snow, no major holidays besides valentines day, and everyday is just bleh bleh bleh. LOL

** Anyone care to mention what shrubs or trees they have grown and started through winter sowing? or hope too? I really am hoping for some peonies and shrub roses this way but I didn't have luck last year either so I'm gonna be patient and keep trying! (even tho I might have ordered a few peonies from Burpees already lol which anyone have recommendations where to order from? preferably cheap and not outrageously priced?)

OHHHH and please be sure to let me know here that you have gotten your package :) AND this has been a great first swap! I was so blessed with great people, great conversation and great seeds! 22 people joined my first swap and that is impressive! I would have never expected it until I took tally at the end of sign-ups! Please all of you keep in touch and maybe join this swap next year ;) and I will try to remember to start a post on the winter sowing forum for us to post pics of our seedlings and such!

~Michael

heavenlyfarm

Livingston seed is based in Columbus, Ohio which is 1 hr. north of us. So, we see their seed for sale everywhere around here. You can also find lots of packs for sale on ebay.

I have had good luck with germinating Japanese Maple seeds. I have over 50 small trees that are 1-3 yrs. old in my flowerbeds growing now. I really want some weeping orange ones, but most look red so far with some laceleaf types. More have been sprouting in the fridge for a couple of months. I hope they hold on until spring. It's tricky to get them started, so if anyone wants any tips that have worked for me, I would be glad to pass them on.

I sent out some peony seeds in trades, so yours might be from my plants Michael. These were seedling grown by a hybridizer and grew very fast and bloomed the second season. It takes around 5 yrs. for a peony to bloom from seed, so be patient. I have not grown any from seed yet but want to give it a try.

I was amazed at what I found at our local Lowe's last year on the sale shelves. Have you ever heard of an intersectional hybrid peony (ITOH)? It is a cross between an herbaceous and tree peony, probably a Chinese tree peony. In a period of a couple of weeks, I grabbed up 2 Bartzella ITOHs for $8 ea.! They are a bright yellow and generally cost between $35-$65. I even was offered a huge clump of Kopper Kettle ITOH on Dave's Garden by a generous lady who wanted an assortment of seeds in return. It had one coppery peach bloom last year. If you have never heard of a Rockii peony, look it up online. They can reach 5' tall, live for over 100 yrs., and have 200 huge blooms. Mine are still babies about 3 yrs. old which have just started blooming.

heavenlyfarm, check your email. I used an email address from a trade we did a year or so ago. Hope it's still good. I don't see how to email you through this site anymore. I have a lot of Livingston Seeds and can share some with you...many are getting older, 2012, 2013, and should be used soon so it would be good to get some to a seed loving person! Otherwise, I'll have to dig up the yard for more places to plant...and that is not going to happen :)

Michael, my package of seeds arrived today... thank you! You did a good job with this swap. I look forward to joining again.

Great packaging and labeling, everyone! Thank you so much! Really great group. :)

Sheri

When Houzz took over, I changed my screen name from Panhandle_Seed_Swap to sheri005.

I received my seeds today!! I'm am crazy happy about them! Michael you really rock!!! And all the folks on here were so generous with their seeds. I haven't even gone thru them all yet, but am impressed with the variety. Just here giggling like a fool as I look each one up, seeing the pictures for the first time :) I am truly grateful. Thank you all so much. And Michael, I am so happy I joined your swap. I hope you do it again, if you're not too busy. It looks like a lot a work, but you handled it extremely well, even in the short amount of time alloted. BTW, I luv the quick turn around swap :)

Sheryl (naturegirl), I just got a chance to email you back after thinking about things I'm looking for. lol

Wilsha and Sheri, Thank you so much!!! I really tried with this swap and I hope you guys enjoy the seeds you got! :) and I will def host this one again next year but it will most likely be at an earlier time. Perhaps with returns around the beginning of winter sowing? (december 21st) :)

~michael

heavenlyfarm

Can't wait to get my seeds. I have jugs prepped and ready to go for them. I've been sorting my seeds and wanted to know if anyone knows how to tell if a seed is viable or not? If there is a visual way to assess the quality of seeds? I'm sure many of you have lots more experience than I do.

I have done a little reading and on certain vegetables you can do the float test and it seemed to hold true to perennial seeds (flower) as well. I put a few different seeds in water and it turns out that the younger the seed the more of the seeds sunk. Here pictures of my test.

The order of my photos and words were not maintained in this post but whose perfect.

It's hard not to sow a pot because I'm running out of jugs, I'm waiting on the seeds from Michael which should come quick cause I live in the same zone, I think the next state East.

Micki

Can't wait to get my package! Thanks Michael for hosting this. I know all your hard work will be enjoyed by so many. Have a great day!

Tammy

My package came yesterday, and I couldn't be happier! Thanks for the great swap!! I can't wait to get these planted!

No hard and fast way to know for sure if seeds are viable that I know of. Some floaters grow for me. I've separated some tomato seeds as I process them and have kept the quick sinkers and "drifters/floaters" separate. The best germination is with the sinkers, but many of the floaters also grow. So if I have lots to process, I keep only the sinkers. If not so many seeds, I'll keep them all.

Of course, many types of seed are collected dry and should not be wetted to check for sinking. That would shorten the time you could store them and still get decent germination.

With older seed, I find soaking the seed for several hours can be helpful. Those seeds are drier and will take longer to absorb enough moisture when planted. The presoak helps them get moisture quickly. Then they won't take so long to germinate in the potting mix and risk rotting.

My seeds arrived! What fun to look at all of them. Many are ones I haven't grown before, some I haven't even heard of! Fun, fun, fun!

And it looks like I better get on the winter sowing bandwagon. Some need stratification and probably won't grow the way I usually start seeds...under lights in a warm room. It will be fun to learn a new gardening method.

Thanks heavenlyfarm for ALL your work in making this swap go smoothly. Thanks for the choices you made for my package. They are great. And thanks to all the traders who sent in great varieties. They are much appreciated.

I like the idea of reporting back on what grows. It would be interesting to see how everyone's seed grow. And I might even learn how to post pictures again :)

I received my seeds yesterday, and all I can say is WOW! So much variety, so many things from both of my lists. Thanks to everyone who sent and a BIG thank you to Michael, for doing a great job hosting his first swap. I'm still learning this new site (not a fan so far) and had to change my name as it was "taken."

As far as testing seed viability, I've done the float/sink test at sowing and kept records and gotten mixed results, no clear answer. I soak most of the seeds I start indoors and some will sink immediately and then after a couple of hours they're floating. And vice versa. I think the only real good test is to put 10 seeds in a damp paper towel or coffee filter and put in plastic bag and leave for the approx. germination time at around 70 deg. I just started some 2014 onion seeds that have a short life. I was surprised to get 80% on those. And started some 2009 tomatoes with 50%.

I've really enjoyed reading everyone's tips and methods and the great photos. So far I have only perennials WSed, columbine, armeria, scabiosa, stokesia. I think I'll use this brutally cold weekend to get going on these new seeds. Thanks again, everyone!

Betsy

Michael, did the 2nd envel. arrive?

Hi Michael,

My seeds came in today and I love them all. Thank you so much for organizing and hosting the swap. Hope to trade with you soon.

Kathy J.

Package arrived today. Thank you all for participating and sending so much love through the mail. This was a great group and I can't wait to do it again next year. Yes Michael, please remind us all to post our photos from wintersowing later on in the ws forum. What a generous gift the scabiosa summer berries was, happy happy. Thank you Michael for organizing and doing a stellar job. I just added a review for you. Happily, I just started a peony farm last year. What are you looking for?

labeling has always been a new challenge and a lesson in progress for me. I am trying to find water proof ink. Also I sell my plants so need to have pictures of plants as well as plant information in each plant. Last year I bought a laminating machine, thought you might like some of the ideas I've thought up thus far.

And Can't Wait to get my package. Micki

Here the pictures aren't laminated yet. I'm thinking the laminating paper will hold in the water. Gotta runthe order of the pics is off.

The point is I'm trying laminated pieces of paper and seeing if they hold up to the weather and inside the jug there is a laminated label of sorts.

Micki, buy a cheap or discounted plastic mini-blinds. Cut the stings out, then section the blind slats into plant tags. Write on them with pencil. It never fades.

Mini blind pieces and pencil is my method too. When I place them in the soil I angle them in the jug so I can look down the spout to read them easily. Makes it convenient when transplanting to have a plant marker ready to use.

I couldn't participate in this swap but it looks like it went well and I hope to join next time. I enjoyed and learned a lot from reading all the postings. Sorry I missed this one. Good luck winter sowing all your new seeds, everyone.

Michael - I just found out this morning that the return envelope was in my cousins package. I'm SO sorry! I will get you the money for the new one in the mail first thing Monday. I wish she would have said something sooner and I would have sent the money sooner :(.

Also, I received my seeds today. THANK YOU EVERYONE!!!!!! I can't believe how many I received. Love the packaging and Love the variety! And what an AWESOME host! Michael, you did a fabulous job!!! And when you get your own place, I will be happy to send you seeds as a house/garden warming gift (and I'm sure everyone on here would do the same). You are a wonderful person and I hope you find your dream farm soon! :)

Thanks again everyone and Happy Winter Sowing!

Di

Received my seeds today, just when I needed a reminder on a cold, snowy, windy day that in the near future it will be spring again. Thank you to all who sent in seeds and to Michael for taking time to put it all together. Can't wait to plant them!

Herbal, tell us about your peony farm please.

I got my seeds!! Michael, you did an excellent job choosing packs to send to me. Well done! Thank you fellow swappers for the nice seed selection! I know I am one of the more picky ones... LoL.

Michael, I'd say your first swap has been a complete success. Bravo!

Katie

Got my seeds yesterday. Lots of goodies to go through. Thanks everyone!

Michael, Micki and everyone else,
I have enjoyed following this thread immensely and reading all your suggestions/ideas. First year WS for me, and I didnt join this swap becuase I was afraid I didnt have enough seeds to send/share. I regret that decision, but I'm IN for next year, Michael!
You did a super job (it's alot of work) and I'm amazed at the number of WS'ing you did...Cant wait to see everyone's results of WS'ing! :0)

Hey,

I am really thankful for all the wonderful comments on how you liked the swap!! It seems I was dreading this part for so long and I am so glad to see that everyone is happy and loving what they got!!!

Betsy, I did get your package the other day!! Thank you and I'm thrilled to be winter sowing that veronica soon!! :)

Herbal, I would love to hear about your peonies!! I am really interested in the big showy "bomb" flowering ones the most! I am really looking for a true reddish flowering one to make an addition to my one hill! But any bomb ones would do! Let me know if you have any to spare and what you would like in return! :) (not sure if my email is on my profile if you'd like to email me: free2be_any1@yahoo.com)

Micki, you are a genius!! I might sell some of my extra winter sown babies and have been trying to come up with a good method for this! Its hard to sell a magnificent plant when there are no flowers, that I find is the hard part but show somebody a picture....and well its worth a thousand words! For traded packets, do you just type some info up and find pics to go with it? or do you look through catalogs for that info? Any other tips would be great!

Di, please don't worry about any return envelope or money. I got everyone covered here ;) I think I can spare a few things and stamps here and there! :) and thank you!

As for my farm dream, I am still hoping and saving :) I am actually wondering if I will do it! I am already becoming attached to the gardens at home like crazy! It's sad that I will one day start over with seeds, cuttings and plants at my own home....actually that even sounds exciting lol forget it. I will def keep everyone updated as I get closer to that dream and trust me, when it happens, that swap will be filled with me commenting about it and excitement! lmao

Jensyen(actually i think i just planted penstemon i got from you) and valal111, please look for this swap next year! (well technically this Fall :)) I will be hosting this swap again and I most likely will be away from GardenWeb for the most part, at least the exchange pages but I will make this swap work again no matter what! I am feeling much more hopeful about this site today(actually things in general) and I see they added pics here and there for the pages and have added our zone info so I can't wait to see how it looks then!

I am trying to think if I forgot anything for today....Well please do post whenever you receive your package or have some exciting winter sowing news! I am personally torn between wishing for Spring to get here and the snow to melt and trying to fit a few more winter sown containers in here and there! (the only problem is finding containers now....recycling goes on Wednesday...hmmmm lol) Anyways, I am gonna drudge outside and put two more winter sown containers outside (black and white ministrels dianthus and dark towers penstemon) and throw some seeds out for the birds!

Wishing you warm wishes and happy winter sowing!
~Michael

heavenlyfarm

This new site still has me signing in with facebook, so it prints my name instead of ibartoo. I will have to do some searching around to fix it.

My seeds arrived today! Thank you so much! I love them all. I started about 8 jugs today and the rest I will start in my little ziplock baggies.
Michael, this was an awesome swap! I hope you do another one too. I haven't traded seeds in a long time, so I didn't have a lot of different varieties. The next one I do will be different. I hope everyone likes what i sent, and I really appreciate those sent in for me and the great variety I received.
I only have about 4 weeks before my last frost date, so I am in a hurry to get them in the ground.
Again, I can't thank everyone enough. This was awesome!
Linda

Just dropping in to catch up on the latest. I wanted to let Michael know that I received my package today. What a blessing it was when i went to the mailbox. Thank you so much and I am so excited to get started planting all these. Happy Sowing!

Have a beautiful day Everyone!

Tammy

Michael, I received my seeds today and was very happy to find alot of seeds that I had on my want list. I also want to thank everyone in the swap for their contributions. Michael you did a wonderful job for a first time host.

Michael-the letter is on its way. I dropped it off at the post office this morning. You should have by this weekend. Thank you again for getting the envelope. And I won't have you pay for my stupidity. I hate days when everything is a whirlwind.

Thanks again for a great swap and I'm going to do some serious WS tomorrow (since it's only going to get up to 9 degrees)! And thanks to everyone for all the wonderful seeds :).

Di

My package arrived today. : ) Thank you very much, Michael! You did an excellent job!

I am very happy with all the goodies.

Saw this post last night about the trade lists being back up. No formatting or searching that I can see, and the wants and haves are in the same list... but it is a start.

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/2851846/good-news-trade-lists-are-back?n=2

Glad to see everyone is getting their packages!!! :)

and I'm also glad to see the trade lists back!! Had to update mine as well! (lol now I've become addicted to wanting to try snapdragons!) The little box to scroll and edit it tho, I would love for it to be bigger so I can see more of it at once! ( I am not complaining tho but just a favor if they are listening to us like they seem to be ;))

Today I am spending the day winter sowing and watching tv!! I need to relax and watch some comedy for once! Again I'm suffering from insomnia and taking pills which sucks! :( I can't wait for Spring, it is a life saver for me and I don't know if you can relate, but when I come in from weeding and planting and seeing flowers and seedlings, I am worn and the other hassles of life seem to disappear and all I see is flowers when I close my eyes! Lol

Oh and is anyone having a tough time deciding what to winter sow and what to save till next year? Because I sure am! I got worried when I looked at my annuals to try this year(I winter sow these next two months) and wow!! TOO many. The problem is, I received alot of generic things like "marigolds"(LOTS) or "zinnia" in a few bad swaps and I feel guilty passing them to any other swap and I figure I might as well just plant them but here I am with way too many to do! LOL I gave some to Brad(moonwolf) and am trying to narrow my list!

Anyways, everyone have a wonderful day!!! :)

~michael

heavenlyfarm

Oh and Micki!! Please send me an email when you get a chance! I would love to talk about your winter sowing and selling plants!!! :)

~michael

Michael, for insomnia, I find that Hops tea works well (which I learned in my herbalism program). I just boil water and add 1 tsp of dried hops, and in 10-15 minutes, I'm drowsy enough :) My sister (a long time insomniac) tried it and not only did it work the first night, but several nights after with only one cup of tea the first night. Maybe it will work for you :)

I couldn't wait to try some of the seeds and planted them inside under lights. Hope I'm not breaking any Winter Sowing Swap rules! It was good I tried this, because several seeds sprouted in 3 days and didn't look right. It turned out that some animal had chewed a small hole in my bag of potting mix and added corn seed, probably stolen from the bird food. LOL So I think I will not use that soil for winter sowing. Maybe I'll sift it and put some in pots in the house and see if anything else grows from the supposedly sterile mix before using it for planting anything else.

I do have sprout in the packs where hibiscus were planted....and I think they are really hibiscus. Maybe I better Google hibiscus seedlings and check in case the critters added other seeds to the potting mix, too.

Nature girl, you should check the germination requirements of the seed species you sowed indoors. Some of them will have improved germination with cold moist stratification. Some species will not germinate at all without cold moist stratification. If your seeds don't sprout much, I'd stick them outside to get snowed on. If you got any seeds from me, I can give you specific details on propagating those seeds. Good luck!

Katie

I for one have had a real hard time deciding what to plant. LOL, My winter is so short and my temperatures are so up and down, that most of the time I start them indoors, just to get my hands dirty and see "green". LOL I did however start about 10 jugs so far and I am still collecting jugs and bottles of all shapes and sizes.

I use a gallon size ziplock baggie and fill about 1/3 with my potting mix. I soak my seeds in hot water with a capful of lemon juice and then I use about 2 ounces of water with each type of seeds. After they soak, I throw the seeds and water right into the baggie. ( I just dump them). If they are larger seeds, i mix them up a bit. I seal the baggie and make sure there is plenty of air in it. As long as there is condensation on the sides, your seeds are moist enough. By the time the little seedlings reach the tops of the baggies, they are usually ready to pot up and harden off. It works like a dream. Once I started doing this, my germination rates skyrocketed. I've even grown citrus trees like this. If you decide to try it, let me know how it works for you.

Some of the seeds I will wait until April or May to start, but they are usually the perennials that i know won't bloom until next year.

I received my package yesterday and loved all. Thanks Michael and everyone.

I received mine Tues but have been under the weather. I still haven't been able to go through all. I'm very excited. Wow, way more than I expected. Thank You Thank You Thank You, Will make use of all. Now where do we go from here.

The amount given was amazing, Thanks to everyone.

What a profitable swap.

I'm going to put these in ABC order cause I still don't know what all I have.

Tons of Flowers, just what I wanted,

Micki