| Author | Content |
MistyPetals North Augusta, SC
February 05, 2008 02:46 AM Post #4497423
| Who knew? COOOOOOOOOL! Great article. I enjoyed it. I tell ya, I learn something new daily here at DG, what a blessing. Happy gardening!
Misty |
doccat5 Fredericksburg, VA (Zone 7b)
February 05, 2008 04:30 AM Post #4497480
| Wonderful! I had no clue, but what a great idea! Thanks for sharing the info, this is great. |
debilu Fingerlakes Region, NY (Zone 6a)
February 05, 2008 06:49 AM Post #4497531
| Good article LeeAnne. I've had impatiens and zinnia reseed. I'll look for more! |
pixie62560 South China, ME (Zone 5a)
February 05, 2008 07:57 AM Post #4497627
| 3G's I know exactly what you mean! I do it w/my snapdragons, morning glories ect... I haven't bought snapdragons since 2004 or 2005 and have an abundance every year! Great article!! |
tmbolin crossville, TN (Zone 7a)
February 05, 2008 08:47 AM Post #4497693
| Great write up Lee Ann. Bet this gets some minds to spinning!
Tina |
darius So.Appalachian Mtns, VA (Zone 5b)
February 05, 2008 09:48 AM Post #4497827
| Good article! I rarely do annuals but maybe this year I can get some tucked into the flower beds I haven't made yet... |
grampapa Wheatfield, NY (Zone 6a)
February 05, 2008 09:52 AM Post #4497835
| I'm beginning to catch on LOL. I'm starting more annuals from seed this year and hope they'll catch on, too. Thanks for the great article. |
lakesidecallas Dandridge, TN (Zone 6a)
February 05, 2008 10:23 AM Post #4497891
| Great article! Thanks, great writing style!
susan |
threegardeners North Augusta, ON (Zone 5a)
February 05, 2008 10:25 AM Post #4497902
| Thank you all so much!! I'm glad you enjoyed the article. Hopefully, it'll save a few people some cash come spring :)) |
angele Elephant Butte, NM (Zone 7b)
February 05, 2008 11:25 AM Post #4498122
| Adding a 'me too" to the chorus of praise for a great article! Thanks it was great reading! |
judycooksey Pocahontas, TN (Zone 7b)
February 05, 2008 12:12 PM Post #4498262
| Lovely article!!
Judy |
Mahnot DFW area, TX (Zone 7b)
February 05, 2008 12:28 PM Post #4498323
| Very enjoyable and informative article.
I'm rethinking what I had planned to buy this year.
Thanks a bunch. |
Garden4ever Plymouth, WI (Zone 8b)
February 05, 2008 12:48 PM Post #4498402
| Great article! Petunias started springing up last year here where I didn't even plant them! Hoping for more of the same with the cosmos, etc. Not sure if they can do it in Zone 4-5, but I am hopeful! |
carrielamont Milton, MA (Zone 6a)
February 05, 2008 12:53 PM Post #4498413
| Looky what zone Lee Anne gardens in! Next question - will they do it containers?
xx, Carrie |
Garden4ever Plymouth, WI (Zone 8b)
February 05, 2008 12:57 PM Post #4498428
| Thanks Carrielamont! Didn't see that. Now I am completely hopeful! |
gardenwife Newark, OH (Zone 5b)
February 05, 2008 01:04 PM Post #4498451
| Now wait a moment...It's spring already in Ontario? Just kidding ya. I loved this article!
I should have some cleome reseeding in a couple of beds if I am patient. Come spring, I always want to get out and get a heard start on the weeding and mulching, but I am sure I've rid the beds of plants I want! At least the cleome seedlings are very easy to identify! LOL |
threegardeners North Augusta, ON (Zone 5a)
February 05, 2008 01:34 PM Post #4498566
| Carrie, they will come back in containers!! If an annual went to seed there, they will come back.
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victorgardener Lower Hudson Valley, NY (Zone 6b)
February 05, 2008 02:10 PM Post #4498742
| Very nice, 3G, and a great way for people to save bucks. It's not always so easy for me to distinguish the seedlings from weeds, however! |
Dea Frederick, MD (Zone 6a)
February 05, 2008 02:44 PM Post #4498855
| Have I ever made the spade mistake before - yuk! Now I try to at least take some photos so I know what the seedlings look like know.
Love those volunteers :)
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daylilydaddy morehead, KY (Zone 6a)
February 05, 2008 02:49 PM Post #4498866
| It happened here just like you said. A Dger lived here before me and had flower boxes and containers scattered about. There was a huge patch of impatiens under the flower boxes mixed with coleus and in the back yard tropical garden the impatiens got scarry huge. This last season I on purpose scattered the seed so I could have the same effect this year. Great Job!
Geo |
Indygardengal Brownstown, IN (Zone 5b)
February 05, 2008 03:15 PM Post #4498957
| I've found that out also 3g. For the last few years my petunia seedlings have arrived to acompany the ones I bought. Last year I just waited on them and WOW the color combinations. They were such fun. I've had the same kind of impatien for years also and usually get some seeds to save but last year was not able to get them. I bet I still havae impatiens, don't you. Thanks for the tip of putting "heads" in the blank spaces. I hope I remember to try that this year.
Veronica |
Sharran Calvert City, KY (Zone 6b)
February 05, 2008 05:05 PM Post #4499341
| Good Job!!!
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victorgardener Lower Hudson Valley, NY (Zone 6b)
February 05, 2008 05:20 PM Post #4499376
| For those who use herbicides (organic or synthetic) for their lawn - be careful about using any pre-emergents near the areas where you want seeds to sprout! |
threegardeners North Augusta, ON (Zone 5a)
February 05, 2008 05:29 PM Post #4499405
| Thanks Victor, good point, I never use any of that stuff, so of course, I never think to mention it... |
victorgardener Lower Hudson Valley, NY (Zone 6b)
February 05, 2008 05:50 PM Post #4499478
| No problem. I have used the organic - corn gluten meal - for the past few years. |
marsue Cabot, AR (Zone 7b)
February 05, 2008 06:21 PM Post #4499586
| I really enjoyed your article, 3g.
I have 3 wave petunia plants that have amazed me completely. I put them in the ground rather than growing them in hanging baskets last spring and those plants have not only NOT died out during this winter but the leaves on them are still green. I fully expected them to die once winter arrived. I had 6 plants altogether, I believe, and the other 3 have not made it.
Another time several years ago I did have petunias that re-seeded themselves. It was a happy surprise!! |
jannich Red Level, AL
February 05, 2008 07:29 PM Post #4499831
| Another great article Lee Ann! |
threegardeners North Augusta, ON (Zone 5a)
February 05, 2008 07:29 PM Post #4499832
| Thank you!! |
soapwort243 South Milwaukee, WI
February 05, 2008 08:39 PM Post #4500073
| Thanks for the great article and the great ideas!! I will use the suggestion about the seeds with the early daylilies ! I have Dianthus, Snap dragons, and Dusty Millers that come back every year ! And better than ever !!! I never had a petunia or impatient come back--I think they die before they go into seeds? (I love impatients -but they never do well for me) |
beckygardener (Becky) in Sebastian, FL (Zone 10a)
February 05, 2008 10:28 PM Post #4500560
| Great article! Funny that you mentioned Petunias ... I was checking some of my potted vines and noticed a lot of growth of what I thought were weeds growing in one of the pots. Thank goodness I didn't get around to weeding right away. I looked today and low and behold they are my beautiful deep purple Petunias coming back from seed this year. I had used the pot in the early Spring of last year for the Petunias and when they all died back I planted MGs. I forgot that there had been Petunias in that pot! And boy oh boy are they now some thick growth with lots of flower buds on them. I just threw more annual seed varieties in my garden beds (store bought). I may regret it if seeds from the plants I had there last year sprout too! LOL! Maybe I'll finally have a full and lush garden! |
gotjoy Bellingham, WA
February 12, 2008 03:07 PM Post #4528964
| This is certainly worth a try, but It would help if I knew what climate zone you lived in! |
gleichen gleichen Canada
February 13, 2008 11:07 AM Post #4532869
| I garden zone 3 in Canada - and yes - they come back from wherever they land. Last year rambling petunias climbed up through the wooly lambs ears and made a spectacular show. The best part - I had never planted those petunias in my garden. To prove once again, the garden has it's own plan. Death to the weeds and let the rest rip |
caffrey Gansevoort, NY
April 23, 2009 03:38 PM Post #6453252
| Thank you so much for this article! I really enjoyed reading it. I live in zone 5 and picked up my rake the last weekend in March. Here is my question/concern...Last year I planted 2000 cosmo seeds on the hill next to my house. I left the cosmos alone all fall and winter until the end of March when I cleaned up (removing old stems and raking/tilling soil). I was hoping/expecting the cosmos to self sow and double but haven't seen anything yet. Our last date for frost is May 15th, today is April 23rd.
1. Did I ruin any chance for my cosmos to show their pretty face again?
2. When do they typically come up in spring? Is it just too early maybe? Do they have any chance of surviving?
Thank you in advance for your guidance! I am so worried! |
threegardeners North Augusta, ON (Zone 5a)
April 23, 2009 03:41 PM Post #6453263
| If you just raked you should be fine...tilling would be a different story. Cosmos are one of the last annuals to appear in my gardens...might be too early.
So glad you enjoyed this article!! |
caffrey Gansevoort, NY
April 23, 2009 05:20 PM Post #6453671
| Thanks 3g's I just raked so hopefully we will be in good shape. It is going to be a beautiful weekend here, in the 80's, so I will be out there with my magnifying glass. Thanks again! |
Potagere (Jim) Farges France (Zone 7b)
June 11, 2009 04:51 AM Post #6672152
| Aaaaaaggghhhh!!!
Anyone who doubts that annuals reseed freely only has to check their lawn!
I live on the edge of a village in the French Jura, just about as far as you can get from
a "weed-controlled" American suburb and still be within reasonable driving
distance of an airport.
Consequently, I am SURROUNDED by undesirable annuals! I do get a few nifty
volunteers, like the lovely yellow coreopsis that blew in from my neighbours' yard last year,
but, mostly, what I get are all those horrible weed seeds that turn into vining invasives (such
as field bindweed and wild blackberry) or deep-rooted, impossible to eradicate bushes/trees
(such as Sumac and wild Elder).
So, although I rarely use a spade for anything, I try to whip out the garden fork as early in the
year as the ground is workable, and root out all of those "other annuals". And then I weed,
weed, weed! I've tried pre-emergents, but basically, in my experience, they have been a
laughable waste of my money.
I think that urban and deep suburban gardeners can follow 3G's advice, but if you live on
"the edge", as I do, it's a constant negotiation between you (the gardener) and the native
plants as to who is going to own each patch of ground.
Not so long ago, I saw some "conjecture photos" of what the centre of Paris would look like
if all the people (and their eradication of plants) were gone in about 20-year "snapshots".
Amazing! (I wish I could remember exactly where I found it!!!)
It served as a fine reminder that we are only borrowing the land upon which we live and garden. |
threegardeners North Augusta, ON (Zone 5a)
June 11, 2009 09:27 AM Post #6672762
| Actually Jim, I do live out in the country ...in Canada.
I do get volunteer Queen Anne's lace, wild berry vines, sumac, all of those things. They are a small price to pay, and easily yanked. The payout, for me, is having hundreds of Nicotiana, Cleome, Poppy, Petunia, Alyssum, etc., seedlings that will bombard my perennial beds with colour later in the summer when the perennials have begun to fade. And never having to pay one single solitary cent for this beauty. |
henryr10 Cincinnati, OH (Zone 6b)
June 11, 2009 09:40 AM Post #6672810
| Excellent Article LeeAnne I missed it first time round.
You article focused on Annuals but the same rules hold true w/ Perennials.
Many reseed and sometimes far from the 'permanent' homes.
Pulmonaria, Forget-me-nots and Blue-eyed Grass, to name just three, can pop up 20' or more away.
We had been weeding out a grass in the cracks between our stepping stones.
One morning, after moving a pot, I found 5 of them w/ lovely little blue flowers adorning the ends.
We had been pulling Blue-eyed Grass.
The original ones had been planted 25' away.
Someone mentioned containers.
Your article is about Spades but applies to Trowels also.
We have well over a hundred containers w/ dozens holding annuals every year.
You know those fill in pots you move around to hide the bare spots in a Perenial Garden?
Hold off before dumping that dirt out from last year's batch.
Currently here in early June we have Columbine, Datura, Perilla, Impatiens, Nicotiana, Valerian, Valerianella, Rose Campion, Marigolds, Zinnia, Morning Glories, Forget-me-nots and I'm sure many others happily sprouting and in many cases blooming away in last year's 'dead annual' pots.
In the ground I've found Nicotiana to be the last seeds to come up.
So late that just now we're seeing seedlings here in Cincinnati.
(Those that volunteered in pots are already showing a bloom or two)
So tread VERY lightly w/ the Spade in it's territory.
Again thanks for the article!
Ric
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Potagere (Jim) Farges France (Zone 7b)
June 12, 2009 03:03 AM Post #6676898
| My problem is, I guess, that I can't tell the "good annuals" from the bad ones untill everything has gotten too large to manage! Easier for me to fork everything out and reseed with seed saved from the previous year! |
gardenwife Newark, OH (Zone 5b)
June 14, 2009 07:54 PM Post #6687545
| Here's a volunteer that made its way to my mom's yard this year from who knows where! We don't know what it is. I'm posting it in plant ID. Gardening will always be a mystery and adventure as long as plants propagate by seed! :)  Click the image for an enlarged view.
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Potagere (Jim) Farges France (Zone 7b)
June 15, 2009 03:32 AM Post #6688987
| Gorgeous! Among the weeds I have STILL not gotten to, either with fork, spade or by hand, I have a bunch of gorgeous Coreopsis blown in, probably, from my neighbour's garden. |
tabasco Cincinnati (Anderson, OH (Zone 6a)
June 16, 2009 09:27 AM Post #6694856
|
I enjoyed reading about your theory on Reseeding in the garden, too, LeeAnne. And I wish I had more experience as a gardener to take advantage of it.
My problem is I have about a hundred kinds of plants in our garden and come springtime and everything greens up and starts to grow, I can not tell which little seedlings are keepers and which are nasty weeds (which we have zillions of). When the seedlings are 2 inches tall they all look pretty much the same to me, and if tI let them get much bigger than that the whole garden goes into a wild frenzy of a weedfest gone amuck within a week.
I would love to be able to recognize plants at an early stage and save some for replanting or trading.
Can anyone tell me: is there some secret or good source (besides a knowledgeable gardening mentor) to learning which seedlings grow up to be which plant (I do know cleome and verbena bonarienses , but all daisy types and sunflower types planted among weedlings all look alike to me for instance)??
Any thoughts on this?
p.s., (Maybe somebody should start a you-tube video series on differentiating seedlings). |
threegardeners North Augusta, ON (Zone 5a)
June 16, 2009 09:32 AM Post #6694879
| I just learned from trial and error. Also, when I was younger, from planting seeds of a specific type in a specific spot...if Grampa let me plant a row of marigolds, for instance, I'd know for a fact that those seedlings all in a row were the marigolds.
As to a good source, I don't know of one...maybe somebody here will... |
angele Elephant Butte, NM (Zone 7b)
June 16, 2009 10:06 AM Post #6695067
| I've got a plant 2 feet tall in one of my flower beds that I still have no idea about. If it is a weed I hope its roots don't go down to the center of the earth.
I planted too many seeds and relied on my memory way too much this year. So I can't even look in Plantfiles to see if there are pictures of seedlings. I think I pulled a whole patch of Cosmos already. |
Potagere (Jim) Farges France (Zone 7b)
June 16, 2009 10:46 AM Post #6695254
| The Seed Site has lots of good photos of seedlings. See : http://theseedsite.co.uk/seedlings.html
I wish, tabasco, that just once I would SEE a seedling of Verbena bonariensis! I've been trying to grow it for years because my wife is a "Portena", but have never had any luck!
Angele, I have a plant 3 feet tall in one of my flower beds that I keep hoping is an Achillea, but am afraid it's just a Queen Anne's Lace that I missed when I was wielding the fork this Spring! |
angele Elephant Butte, NM (Zone 7b)
June 16, 2009 12:29 PM Post #6695830
| Jim, thanks for the link to that amazing resource. Much appreciated.  |
henryr10 Cincinnati, OH (Zone 6b)
June 16, 2009 12:45 PM Post #6695956
| t,
One thing that has helped us is taking ugly shots.
Pictures of the bare ground then each seedling as it matures.
Some after a few days are obviously weeds.
Some it takes weeks.
Then every Spring you look at pics and you are refreshed on what it is you're looking at.
AND they are your weeds... no need to look thru tons of snaps online.
Ric |
Potagere (Jim) Farges France (Zone 7b)
June 16, 2009 01:07 PM Post #6696042
| Ric,
That is a clever idea! It would make a great DG article!
Jim |
henryr10 Cincinnati, OH (Zone 6b)
June 16, 2009 03:14 PM Post #6696515
| Indeed it would Jim.
Thanks for the Spin.
Ric |
Potagere (Jim) Farges France (Zone 7b)
June 16, 2009 03:58 PM Post #6696722
| I visited your "homepage", Ric, and I find it amazing that htat garden can be in Cincinnati! It's fabulous. The steps alone are worth a whole series of articles and provoke a number of questions :
Why does it appear that you started at the "top", when everyone says to start steps at the "bottom"?
How well did that interlocking rubber matting work?
Why is my cat there? [We knew she wandered over an extensive territory; but, Ohio?. Maybe she knows I want the ancestral farm back!] |
henryr10 Cincinnati, OH (Zone 6b)
June 16, 2009 04:19 PM Post #6696836
| Jim we actually laid the Patio first.
Then the deck by the Hot Tub.
That gave us the elevation. Then built the boxes.
The framing we did do bottom to top.
The decking was easier to do the other way.
Our chop saw is right off the deck. |
Potagere (Jim) Farges France (Zone 7b)
June 16, 2009 05:03 PM Post #6697017
| I'll bite.
What's a "chop saw"? |
JenT Columbus, OH
June 16, 2009 08:00 PM Post #6697827
| Huh, I've never had any annual reseed and come back the next year! It certainly seems obvious that it would work, but I don't know why it never has... |
henryr10 Cincinnati, OH (Zone 6b)
June 16, 2009 09:51 PM Post #6698413
| Sorry I should have said Miter Saw. When I started we called them all chop saws.
I do have a chop saw but it's for cutting metal.
Same basic machine diamond wheel instead of saw blade.
Jen a lot depends on the plants you are growing as annuals.
Zinnia, Marigolds, Asters and a ton more will reseed happily.
If you are growing hybrid annuals they may be sterile and if fertile almost certainly won't be what you planted the first year.
Ever have tomato plants come back up?
It's very common w/ grape and cherry tomatos.
If they weren't Heirloom/Heritage types they probably tasted terrible.
Sweet Millions, Hundreds, etc are the result of crossing different varieties.
Now if you're growing Zone 9/10 Tropicals like New Guinea Impatients, etc their seeds will freeze out and die.
They'd need to be stored indoors.
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tabasco Cincinnati (Anderson, OH (Zone 6a)
June 17, 2009 04:10 PM Post #6701892
|
Thanks. Keeping a photo catalog of our personal garden weeds is a good idea. I suppose it would be smart to take photos of the zinnias, cosmos and all the other easy reseeders too for the record. Then supplement with the info on The Seed Site and the weed encyclopedia site, too. I would probably learn something worthwhile!
I collect seeds from a few of our plants and natives in the woods to reseed 'strategically', but generally don't bother with the hybrids.
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