Ruthz:

Some of your seeds may need cold treatment depending on how low the temperature gets in your area. You might want to research that and see if that makes a difference.

Hope this helps,
Ann

They are not fast germinators. They're usually sprouting mid to late spring.

I only WS columbines, they do fine. Fresh seed sprouts at a high percentage, purchased not always the case. You'll have better germination with seeds you've traded for then seeds you've bought.

T

I totally agree with Trudi. I've tried boughten seed with zero to 10% germination only. I've had great success with wintersowing Columbine and won't do it any other way now. I now need to learn to sow lightly, for I seem to get hundreds of babies to a jug!!

Sandy

I ws columbine seeds. It take 3 weeks or a month to germinate. The germination rate is low for me too. They bloom profusely in the 2nd year.

LOL, I agree with Sandy, ws columbine germinate so well that I am giving away dozens even after I have learned to sow lightly. If you have a variety that isn't germinating well, keep the container as they may germinate over a very long period, even as late as fall. I place the container in shade with the top off and keep the mix moist.

After I planted out what I assumed were the four plants that germinated, lots more germinated in the garden over the summer. So yes, they are slow and they do need some cold treatment. They are some of the last ones to germinate in my yard.

I wonder what I'll have this year when they bloom. Can they be divided? And when?

I sowed some Crimson Star last spring in a pot after leaving seeds in fridge for a few weeks. Never came up, but I haven't
sowed anything else in the pot. I checked today and still nothing. I'll give it a while yet.

Columbines can be divided, but it's not a thrilling event for the plant and the divisions can get a bit shocky and drop their leaves. However they do resprout. You need to dig up the entire plant with a large spade to get up as much of the root sstem as possible. Hose the roots off and pry out pieces or just butcher the thing and divide the root mass with a knife into three or four wedges. Replant immediately and place a cheapo garden chair over the transplants to provide some shade during the day. Water well, and hopefully there won't be much ddie back.

Columbines are garden hussies just like hollyhocks and they'll cross with any other columbine in the garden. You have some really nice looking offspring--they're always beautiful, but I've yet to find an exact duplicate of the parent plant. As my mother would say, "Close, but no cigar."

I checked my outside jug today and have two teeny tiny sprouts.
That one is purple granny bonnets sown 01/03/10.
Yeaaaa

I have started columbine inside under lights (before I knew about ws) and I ws some last year. The ws ones germinated much better and grew much, much faster in the spring. Both times, the seeds were purchased. This year, I'm ws some seeds I collected from my own plants.

I will say that they tend to sprout over a very long period - some seeds quicker and some much slower out of the same pack. Don't know if you'd need a cold treatment in zone 8 - but I don't think putting a seed envelope in the fridge would do it. I think the seeds may have to be already moistened. I wasn't sure if that was what you meant.

vvesper, the 3 that I have in the fridge are planted in soil in 3 cow pots and inside 3 plastic bag.
Two were purchased seeds and the other seeds are from trades.