Have a good one!!!

Sandy

I was out in the garden all day. It was delightful!! I'm sure there is more winter on the way, but I sure enjoyed today.

Meg :)

TBT

pulldownclaw. I am a first time winter sower. Thought I'd give it a whirl. Can't be any worse than my other seed starting failures. Supposed to be pretty fool proof but, it doesn't know me yet. We shall see.

I just got a mini greenhouse thing so I am also starting stuff inside that. More like a bakers rack with a plastic thing on it.

And my winter sowing mess is as follows..

Most of this stuff should be covered up but with the weather we've been having I wasn't sure they wouldn't suffocate.

Nanny, where are you from? Hope you like VA so far. And believe me it's not usually so warm in FEB. SO don't expect this every year! :-)

Welcome everyone and feel free to post here. This is an open thread and you can ask away. Not than I can help you but, I will try or maybe someone else will.

Sunny, I'm thinking the same thing about winter sowing, what have I got to lose? I imagine I'll do a little of that and start stuff inside and see what works. I usually try to start seed inside with mixed results. This year I'm trying to build a shelf and buy some flourescents to get the seedling started, we'll see what I actually get accomplished! ;)

We're in the southwestern part of the state and have a small, family owned commercial greenhouse business.

We've planted all the perennials we're going to do and have started on the annuals. Veggies aren't for a while yet; no one really thinks of planting warm weather veggies until at LEAST the middle of May.

Stuck 1700 geraniums last week and they're all looking good. That is the first major planting we've done but more to come.

Regards,

Tom

Tom, sounds like you've got a nice setup. Virginia has some wide ranging climates, as we can set out our veggies here in the middle of April, and even earlier for people near the coast I imagine.

Sunny, I have one of those portable greenhouses like yours and it's very good if you watch it closely and don't let the heat build up and cook the seelings. I started all my veggie transplants in it last spring and had good success with them. I haven't gotten it started yet this year but hope to get some things planted late this week.

Wintersowing does work. I did it for a few years and was impressed by the success. Read and follow Trudi's advice and you should do fine. I had been starting seeds inside but with no light setup and very little south facing window area, it was mostly a frustrating experience. Things would come up nicely and then get tall and leggy and not very healthy looking. Wintersowing copies mother nature's technique... and who should know best how to plant seeds? LOL

Sure is good to hear from all you Virginians. Thanks for starting this thread, Sunny.

Sandy

Sandy, as for the things inside, they are looking good so far but, I know the risks of starting too early. I just wanted to play in the dirt soo bad. Most of what I have inside is destined to be houseplants with a few exceptions. If they don't work out I still have plenty of seed and I can just resow 'em.
What I am most looking forward to is the Joseph's coat. It's a colorful foliage plant in case y'all don't know. It is simply stunning and I can't wait to see it grow up.
I just got my order from ValueSeeds today so I see more w/sing in my near future. Won't that be a shock? They come out of their nice cozy little packets and get put in the snow. Almost seems cruel. Oh well, survival of the fittest right?

I have an unfinished 2nd floor with great light and will use that space to start some seeds...just trying to plan for things that will give me the most "bang for the buck" in the bare naked yard for this year. :)

My little portable greenhouse has worked out fine for starting a few flats and since it's my new toy, I really enjoy using it. I plan to get it up and growing in the next few days. I do use a heat mat under one flat and would like to get another one this year. They're not exactly cheap but well worth the expense.

1. overcrowding, which leads to

2. not enough light

so they try and "stretch" toward the available light. We'll have plants do that in the greenhouses if we run out of room. We can control heat and water but not light---cloudy days will slow things down and sunny ones will speed things up.

Regards,

Tom

We are supposed to be gettin some nice weather here in the next few days. Wet but, warm. Almost 50 today and 60 tomorrow. And higher after that. I can't wait. I have so much to do outside but between work and the cold I haven't had the time to get anything done. I was outside about a week ago in my winter coat and winter gloves planting my poppies out though.

Oh well. I love your set up. I have my seedlings in my bedroom and it's a pain but I have to remember it's not permanent. I will have to take pics tonight and post.

I have my raised bed garden built, but it needs dirt. About 53 cubic feet. I was going to call the garden center but someone told me HD and Lowe's sell in bulk? I am not buying multiple bags of garden mix. Uh uh..

Anyone have any thoughts? I am so excited I found this forum. Adding to favorites now..

Anyone else start their seed yet and anyone from around here?

Happy Gardening!
Kathy

Last year my maters were pounded by heavy down pours, but.. that's to be expected around here. Nice during the day then pop up t-storms out of no where. I was still a major downer to go outside and see the damage. Better than getting hail though!

How do you put those little smiley's in the message??

Erin, you have to upload them to a photobucket like site then you can get the code to post with them. They like to be let out every now and again.

I just noticed that you are z7B and I am z8.. and we live 15 min apart LOL! I think I will update mine. Not sure where I got 8 from anyway.. :) Come to think of it, looking at everyone elses' zones.. I am definitely off by a hair!! Funny..

Best,

Tom

Betty, I think GW has a Winter Sowing forum. I stumbled on this site recently looking for tomato seeds or something.. It's pretty neat.

Warmer temps on the horizon!

Erin

Betty...yes the winter sowing forum here is great. Read the FAQs. I had a very good success rate in getting seeds to germinate...even the harder stuff that I never had success with before.

Part of my problem is that I've never gardened so I don't know when to do what, but that book has some charts in the back that will hopefully help, and I also found the link to the VT chart in another thread.

If anyone lives near Orange or between Orange and Charlottesville, feel free to drop me a line. I'd love to find some gardening buddies!

As far as charts, I'd pick up a Farmer's Almanac.

Good luck!

Erin

Sunny 631 - I think I have exactly the same mini-greenhouse as you show in your pic above. My husband got it for me for Christmas, and I was so thrilled. Now it is tied to my front porch (after losing a bunch of lettuce seedlings when the wind knocked it over... oh well, live and learn) with some happy looking spinach and lettuce seedlings.

I am in Central VA, between Charlottesville and Richmond (right outside of Gordonsville to be more specific).

Like I said, I am a novice gardener. Last year all I grew was basil, parsley, and chives. The chives have come back up, and I am so thrilled. This year I am expanding to some veggies and hoping that I have some success. I put some peas and radish seeds in the ground last weekend, and I check every morning to see if anything has come up... *crosses fingers*

Well, if nothing else, at least I have my compost pile to keep me entertained!

~ Christine :)

Sandy

Thanks for the tips! I might try that, as my porch has a roof and I would kind of like to put the little greenhouse out in the yard somehow so it can get even more sun... maybe weighting it down like you suggest would work.

~ Christine :)

Ah, spring . . . even the frogs were singing last night.

Been lurking around for a few years and thought I would check back and see what's going on in the Virginia forums and decided it was time to register. I am glad I did.

I have those "let me at the dirt blues" but not the weather allowing me to get out and play in it, so I am just starting to clean up the yards for late spring and summer planting.

I am thinking about starting an eating garden this year. Haven't done that for many years but I think it's time to try my hand at it once again.

I can use any help anyone can offer...Not planting anything fancy now. Just your regular salad and side dish plants and green peppers are a must have. My family and friends are looking forward to some good old home made spaghetti sauce and stuffed peppers, not to mention Zucchini bread.

My problem being, is that my side yard where my garden will be has a 6ft high fence surrounding it and it does cut down on the morning sun so I thought I might take some of the more leggy plants and use the Topsy Turvy bags and hang them off my garage eaves, where the sun shines most of the day. Has anyone tried Topsy Turvy planters?

I have been slowly re-inventing my front and side foundation plantings and think this is the year I will make my final commitment to what I am going to actually do with them. Mostly I plant perennials like Knockout roses, day Lilly's, small foundation shrubs and Begonias in between the shrubs. But I think the foundations could use a bit more polishing.

Glad I stopped by today, hope to have many good chats with y'all.

Good Luck to all this season!

Thanks for the heads up on the Topsy Turvy planter information. Going to run over and see if I can get them bright and early Monday morning. I am really excited about going to Lowe's and Home Depot this year. Can't wait to get started in the gardens.

Been out there all day yesterday and today getting things cleaned up and ready for planting. Hope they have them in stock so I can grow some good old slicing tomatoes and some small grape tomatoes for our salads.

I am also hoping they have some preformed ponds this year too. I put a small one in last year and now I want a larger one. I think most people want a larger one once they see how how nice the smaller ponds are. That's another post though.

I am wowed over as to how many Virginians are here.
Good to see that. I know I can use all the help I can get with my gardens and what better way than from all those wonderful Virginian gardeners.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week planned, even if you have to go to work...remember to take some time out for those simply pleasures that our gardens give us.

Chat with you all soon.

So yesterday I decided to put a couple bell pepper plants in a topsy turvy bag. I know I'm early but I'm over it. I started waaay too early and have over 100 plants.

But anyhoo..

I thought I was going to kill my plants. I loosened the root ball and then had to shove what was left through what looked as friendly as a medieval chastity belt.

Got the plants in and they looked awful. I figured.. I killed them. I watered and made sure I was watering near the root ball and kept checking on them. Well finally later in the evening they had perked up. Today they looked much better. Not sure I'm a big fan of these right now but I'll keep an eye on them.

Kadz-have you been to Gary's yet to see what he has in? I am probably going to check it out in the next few days. Looks like the weather might be getting better around here.

Brrrrrrrrrr!

Sandy

Fortunately, we've finally got some sunshine coming out today.

I hope everyone else faired the same!!!

Sandy

Shannon

The azalea's are my neighbor's. I'm so glad our colors merge so well.

I love the spring :) And here is a shout out to all the great people I have traded with since I joined here. Thanks!!!

David

I have the hosta and heuchras under control with my plantings but I have no experience with any of the others. I should also be okay with any of the succulents as well since they are easy.

I was curious if anyone else is growing Plumeria or Paw Paw trees in VA.

Sorry I haven't been around lately. Not been feeling well plus the constant rain in my area isn't helping me pop out of my winter doldrums either.

Today I transplanted my Christmas Carmelia from the street side of my house to my neighbors side of my house. Hope I don't lose it. It sure gives me a much needed holiday thrill to see all those beautiful red and yellow center flowers at Christmas, when virtually nothing is growing then. Maybe this year I will actually get to see them as my knockout roses towered over it last winter. So please say a few of those great garden prayers, we have all needed from time to time, maybe they will help my beautiful Camellia bush adjust to it's new home. We both would appreciate all you can send our way.

Hope everyone is well and happy and enjoying the long holiday weekend. Please take a few minutes and say a prayer for those who gave their lives for us.

Have a safe and enjoyable Memorial day weekend.

Take Care Everyone.

I heard on a news promo that we are supposed to have a Texas summer. What is a "Texas Summer"? I know Florida summer but not Texas. Why can we just not have a VA summer anymore? damn global warming!!!!

Also to those of you who grow Plumeria around here... How do you give the heat and sun that they need to thrive but not give them the rain or water? Do I need to be super vigilant with these plants. Are they higher maintenance than my pets where I have to move them around everytime it rains. I certainly do not want to grow these inside until I have to(winter).

Also does anyone know what the Wal Mart special Red Lava rock is made out of? Is it artificial igneous rock or what? Pumice maybe? idk any ideas? I am looking for a nonexpensive ammendment to my miracle grow cacti mix to allow for faster drainage.

David