Use as many seeds as you like. For tiny ones I sprinkle on the soil surface. They often grow to look like Chia Pets. I just cut them into hunks and plant out that way.

For larger seeds, like zinnia, I'll space them more reasonably and plant out singly.

Karen

Location- put them outside. The cold is good, rain and snow essential. The moisture and freeze/thaw cycles will help to break down the seed coat.

You don't have to worry about temperatures until you have seedlings. Tender ones, like zinnias, might be damaged by frost, so most of us don't start those until closer to spring. Hardy perennials and hardy annuals, like poppies and bachelor buttons, like the cold and laugh at frost.

Just put them outside, where they belong. Mother nature drops seeds there, and they grow. We have hundreds of wintersowers doing this, many for years now, with nothing but happy results.

My milk jugs last winter
{{gwi:354020}}

Turned out like this
{{gwi:359274}}

Karen

Very impressive! Thank you!

Atta girl, mommie rose! Get 'em out there!
Believe it or not, we have a member in zone 1, North Pole Alaska who wintersows. Compared to her winters, our weather in zones 5 and 6 are nothing.

Where are you Chocolatemoose? Haven't seen or heard from you all year I don't think. Speak up- I'm bragging about you!

Karen

I've been quietly lurking with a cozy, fuzzy blanket over my head trying to stay warm...LOL

I'm not starting my WS babies for at least another week...Simply because we have been experiencing sustained 40-50 below zero temps and it's too cold to warm up the garage to plant. Plus,the thrill of trotting my babies outdoors in those temps wore off LAST winter...Today is a balmy few degrees above zero!

This is a previous pic in March of last year on the back deck.
{{gwi:359275}}

This is what they turn into
{{gwi:359276}}

Karen...You'll be sorry you woke me up!...LOL But thanks for doing so!

I too was wondering where you had gone! I'm glad your back chocolatemoose!

Hi Moose! I'm glad you're back.

I can't even imagine living Alaska, those temps are beyond my power of imagination. But you sure do grow beautiful wintersown babies in that cold incubator.

Karen

Karen and Chocolatemoose, those are beautiful pictures! I hope my ws babies will look half that good.
And Moose.. I can not even fathom that kind of cold, I think my blood would freeze within minutes. You deserve a medal or something, all of you that live and garden in those temps!

AK IS cold when it hits those temps, but in the Interior where I live, it's extremely dry with minimal wind so it feels different than other parts of the country do at those temps. Your body acclimates, we take certain cold weather precautions and for the most part, life goes on. I can't fathom 100+ degree temps with humidity in the summer...Naw...I'd be a blob of melted chocolate...LOL. The ones who deal with the high temps, crazy winds or ice storms are the ones who I think are amazing...After 47 years in New England and family which swelters through summers in the south, I'll stay here! AK's incredible summers are the medal Mother Nature awards us for enduring the winters...Now, if she could just award that medal a bit sooner...LOL

Moose o chocolate. yum!!!!

Anywho...give it a few years and I'm sure your zone will increase to a balmy Zone 2!!!

Woohoo!!!!!

?????

Chocolatemoose, how long of a growing season do you have there in Alaska? I'm with you regarding summer in Alaska, I have never been but have friends who have and some of the photographs that they have are amazing.

It's a beautiful state!

Linda

Karen,

Those are some great pictures! It is amazing how such tiny little packages can provide so much color, texture, fragrance and joy! Thanks for sharing them.

I hope that I can get some nice results this year as this is my first year winter sowing.

Thankfully, my wife is patient and understanding of my love of the yard.

Linda...Considered to be 90 days outdoors. June 1 to Aug. 30.

And to get this thread back OT, I am overly meticulous about spacing seeds in any of my containers...Seeds that have to be sprinkled give me anxiety attacks...LOL

Had to add that so AK won't be blamed for going OT