Storing Seeds February 6, 2010

 

 

I’m currently in the middle of a plant propagation course that is teaching me a great deal about the science behind “plant propagules” (i.e., seeds, cuttings, pups, grafts, etc).   Many of us gardeners propagate plants all the time without really think much of it; it’s a natural and necessary part of filling up a garden without breaking the bank by buying mature plants every time you want to try something new.   The past week or two of lecture has been about seeds and how they function as the powerhouse of new life that they are.  It reminded me that a post about properly storing seeds might be helpful to new gardeners. 

 

 

No matter how short a time between when you harvest or buy your seeds and when you sow them, it is best to constantly keep them cool and dry.  Every bit of heat and moisture, even just little condensation, they come in contact with depletes their viability, or ability to germinate.  Because seeds are highly engineered by Mother Nature to “turn on” their inner mechanisms when they come in contact with moisture and warmth, exposing them to these elements before you are really ready to grow them means the seeds run the risk of starting their engines and then running out of gas, at which point they are dead.   In some instances, seeds are also triggered by light; those that are highly sensitive to it are the ones that come to you in foil packets inside the seed package. 

 

 

If you protect seeds from moisture, heat, and light, they can last much longer than if they are sitting out on your desk or countertop (not that I’ve ever done that…).  I find a good storage system for the home gardener consists of a couple paper towels, a tightly sealing plastic container or ziplock bag, and a corner of your fridge.   The towels wick up any moisture that creeps in so it’s a good idea to change them out every month or two.  You can also use a glass jar with a lid which keeps out even more moisture, but I haven’t found one that has a very wide mouth and still fits well in my fridge.  Freezing seed is also an option and will improve germination rates in those seeds that need stratification, or a cold treatment like seed would get naturally if it were laying on the ground over the winter, waiting for spring to que its turn to sprout.

 

Dealing in Dahlias February 1, 2010

 

‘Tis the season for ordering new seeds, bulbs, transplants, cuttings and {dahlia} tubers for the approaching spring.  This used to be a favorite activity for me each winter, but this year I’m finding myself a bit more stressed out now that I’m going to be growing flowers full time.  I’m feeling some pressure to pick stuff that’s going to make good money while also being a good value for the propagule/seed (I can’t believe some not-so-uncommon cut flowers are creeping up to nearly $5 for 25 seeds!).   But when it came time to order more dahlias, I was delighted.  No flower makes my heart sing quite like a luscious dahlia so I ordered with abandon.  I use Swan Island dahlias because of their reputation and specialty focus on dahlia breeding.  Its a place I want dearly to visit some day to see their 40 acres (!!!) planted all in dahlias.  Can you imagine the beauty there?   I bought my little piece of that heaven, including their collection of 16 cultivars just for cutting (middle tile of mosaic above) and can’t wait to get these stunning blooms growing in my own market garden.

They’re Here Already! January 14, 2010

 

I can’t believe it.  My Agave victoriae-reginae babies are here already!  These seeds were sown just last week (6 short days!).  All the literature I read said it would be several weeks and perhaps even months before they would germinated.  As I went to mist the seeds this afternoon, I was shocked to discover their very  delicate cotyledons when I opened up the little humidity tent I constructed over the seed flat .   In many many years, these tiny darlings will become these gorgeous plants.

 

 

Apparent tips for success when sowing Agave victoriae-reginae seeds: 

- use a germination potting media
- fill your seed tray with the media and soak it thoroughly
- sow your seed straight on top of the wet media (do not cover with media)
- create a humidity tent by inverting another tray on top of your seed flat and cover with plastic wrap or a clear bag
- Mist lightly with a fine mister (don’t use a watering can) every other day
- Keep tray in indirect sun and around 70-75 degrees F.  (Mine was just sitting on my bedroom floor near a south facing window.)

Succulent & Cacti Inventory (for now) January 9, 2010

Long overdue and still not complete by any means, here’s the first stab at an inventory of my ever-expanding collection of succulents and cacti.  Not all of my specimens are included as many of my hardy Sempervivum are outside, and it’s much to cold to go out and uncover them from the drifts of snow to take their headshots.  I also am not a hundred percent sure on some of the nomenclature for a few of these that are pictured.  If you see anything you are fairly certain is incorrectly identified, please feel free to leave a comment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sowing for the Next Century January 8, 2010

 

The winter months have me a bit down at the moment, I must confess.  It’s been a bitterly cold, windy and snowy winter thus far (unusually so), and it’s only the beginning of January!   I miss my garden horribly.  Horribly.  

 

 

 

What can put a smile on just about any gardener’s face, regardless of the forlorn frosty forecast?  Planting seeds, of course!   It’s much too early to sow any typical crops for next season, but I had some seed pods from a Queen Victoria century plant (Agave victoriae-reginae) that had bloomed over the past several months in the Silver Garden in Longwood’s conservatory.   Funny looking things, aren’t they?   As it turns out, you have to really pound the pods with a hammer or other blunt object to get them to split open and spill their seed. 

 

 

I had no idea how to sow these seeds, or even really which bits (the tan or the black) were actually the seed…I presume it’s the black, but I put both on the soil just in case.  The succulent specialist at Longwood hadn’t tried to germinate them before either, but she did suggest that keeping the seed plenty moist (in contrast to how the parent plant prefers to be kept rather dry) was the way to go.  I did some research online and in a few books on propagating succulents and, while details were limited, the general sense I got was to sow the seed on the surface of the soil (don’t bury it) and treat it like most other seeds, but with a lot of patience as this one could take several weeks to even months to germinate and then, of course, years and years to mature.   This seed was “fresh” but also very dried out from sitting in a too-hot room for a few weeks while I was running around over the holidays.    As with all my attempts at succulent propagation, I’ll report back here in this post when there’s some rough determination of success or failure in hopes that it will help someone else figure this fun group of plants out.

 

 

I’m thrilled to make a go at growing a succulent from seed, this being my very first attempt at such.  However, the simple act of sowing the seed and having that sense of anticipation has already been a lovely reprieve from the winter doldrums.  I can only imagine how much more exciting it will be if and when the seed germinates, and I have hundreds of baby century plants to nurture through many winters to come.

 

Winter’s Here December 22, 2009

 

Yesterday was the official start of winter and was appropriately welcomed by apparently one of the largest snow storms in history (for the month of December) in our region.  Over the weekend, it snowed for more than 24 hours straight and left us with a 23 inch pile of the white stuff on the ground.    I wonder if this will have any affect on our recent “promotion” to Zone 7?  Hmmm.  Anyway, I love the snow and welcome its insulating blanket to shield my young perennials from the freezing drying winter winds we’ve been having lately.  There’s not much of my front shade garden or the winter container plantings on my back deck to be  seen at the moment.  Hopefully the compost bin is still managing to digest a bit, even in this wintery wonderland.

 

 

Fortunately, winter is a good excuse to practice my indoor gardening skills.  I’ve never had so many plants packing in around all available windowsills as I do this year.  I blame my addiction to succulents. The aeoniums in particular are growing like weeds at the moment; they are cool-weather growers in their native habitats.  But it’s not all succulents crowding around for the low winter light that streams through the panes each day. 

 

 

There’s a big pot of catnip for the three fuzz balls in the house.  There’s also my honeydew melon sage, struggling but seeming as though it might make it through the winter.  It was so hard to come by this one plant, I may very well cry if it gives up the fight before spring  comes again.  There’s also a small pot with a cutting of chocolate mint tucked in there somewhere.  I just loved rubbing that herb for its delicious fragrance this summer that I thought maybe having a bit of it inside over the dark days would help lift my spirits.  There are also two small lime trees in the guest bedroom, hugging the window there.  One of them is likely not long for this world though as it has gotten a bad infestation of scale.  I can’t bear to put it out on the curb though as I really should for the sake of my other plants.  The other lime, a variegated variety, recently bloomed and appears to be setting itty bitty new fruit thanks to my efforts to hand-pollinate it with a paint brush.

 

Sunny Succulent Bouquet December 11, 2009

 

I didn’t think there would be any more arrangements to be made featuring locally grown flowers this year since we had our first snow and hard freeze this past week.  But, lo and behold, I got the inspiration to make this darling design using the very last of the sunny yellow mums grown in our greenhouse and several cuttings of succulents from my collection.   It’s no secret that succulents fascinate me, and I snatch up any chance to use them in floral designs.   Besides their architectural lines and modern appeal, I love that I’m giving clients a lasting element to their arrangements when I include succulents that they can plant after the flowers fade.

 

Christmas at Longwood December 5, 2009

 

 

 

 

A Little Seasonal Cheer December 5, 2009

 

 

At my house, there’s not a lot of holiday decorating that goes on because my boyfriend grew up with Hanukkah and I grew up with Christmas.   The compromise is just to not decorate for either.   That being said, I’ve taken to decorating for the “winter season” in subtle ways.  I thought I’d share two bits of decor with you since they both involve botanicals.

 

 

First up is the side table piled high with succulents and a vignette of milk glass containers, evergreen branches and poppy pods spray painted gold.  It’s not fancy, but it makes me happy.  hopefully the reindeer don’t cross the line into Christmas too much.

 

 

The front door is no longer adorned with the hydrangea wreath from this autumn.  Instead,  I made a wreath using a foam core wrapped in light gold yarn and a bit of green-blue yarn and decorated it with more of those gold poppy pods and some dried eucalyptus seeds and a glittery snowflake.  I rather like it, though it’s a tad small for the scale of our mammoth front door.

 

Coming Along Nicely December 3, 2009

 

The new garden is finally starting to look like something…not much, mind you, but something.  I now have moved all my perennials from the old garden (that I’ve written so much about over the past two seasons) to the new one.  I’ve also planted several hundred tulip bulbs that will be the first cuts in the spring, I believe.   A central pathway is partially dug and mulched in wood chips and the familiar chair and side table are in place underneath the shade of a nearby tree to offer some rest right from the start next year.   You can’t see it there, but the ‘City of York’ rose is planted next to the fence by the chair to festoon that corner with fragrant white blooms all summer long.

 

 

While I’m happy to have this much done, it has been very slow going.  So, I’ve just bought myself a 4-cycle Mantis rototiller!  I’m excited to try this model as it’s light and compact enough for me to throw in the back of my car to take between sites when there’s more than just this one garden (and there most certainly will be).   With only about 1/6th of the land for this garden cleared, the tiller will come in mighty handy.   Should the weather hold (unlikely now that it’s started to get cold and rainy in true December fashion), I’ll use it to break up the roots of the remaining weeds and work in some horse manure and compost yet this winter so the soil is ready to be worked into lovely seedbeds in the spring. 

 

 

One concern I do have about this new site is the drainage.  The soil itself is gorgeous but as it’s in an old river basin at the foot of a hill, it seems to be staying constantly moist.  This is a boon in summer but a potential bust in winter as perennials hate cold wet feet.  I’m building my raised beds high and hoping for the best!