that's wonderful!
just be careful, don't know what you've planted-
temps here in NJ are forecast down to 12- so if yours are going down that low, make sure they can tolerate that temp. If you're not sure, throw something over them. Fortunately it should only be for one night.

what are they?

I'm watching the forecast closely and will place a heavy blanket over them if needed. I've sowed a variety of brassicas, tomatoes, flowers and others types of seed.

Broccoli are the first to sprout!

Additionally, I am just seeing garlic to sprout up through the soil!

Lucky you! Congrats on your sprouts.

I usually get sprouts about this time of year, the very early sprouters like Lupine. But, I just started sowing this past week and spring is WAY behind this year, so even if I had started earlier, it has been too cold and there has been way too much snow to get sprouts yet.

The snowdrops aren't even blooming yet!

I had to follow-up....this is my first time winter sowing and I have sprouts.... my Bok Choy of all things is the first to pop up about 1 inch no true leaves yet though.

Congrats on your sprouts and as others said just watch the nighttime forecasts for frost and throw a blanket over the containers as needed.

I'm in Terrene's weather pattern. Lots of snow and cold and way behind where it should be by now temp-wise. Just got my first jugs out yesterday but it wouldn't have mattered. We haven't had enough warm days for anything but the hardiest coles to have sprouted (and I'm doing them for the fall this year since I've had no luck with them in previous springs, although if this weather holds much longer I'm probably going to regret that. :)

Caryl

OMG me too finally! One teeny tiny English Daisy sprout! I hope this is the last week of cold weather here in NEPA.

So far: zinnia, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower... checking every other day or so! I will be direct sowing radishes, carrots, and beets this week!

Watch those zinnias! They're tender ....

I've just started sprouting. It's still too cold.

Hollyhocks, Lynchis Vesuvius, Dianthius, & Anise.

I have sprouts too! Mountain phlox, California bluebells, Achilliea rubra, Silene none-so-pretty and broccoli. I can see a bunch of seeds looking like they are starting to split open too. I still have stuff to sow. I better get moving!

NW Illinois here and I have sprouts in most of my jugs. This is a very nice spring - normal for a change with daytime highs in the 50's-60's and nights just above freezing.

Seems like most recent years we have gone straight into summer from winter.

My tomatoes have been slow to sprout... but I have a few, and tomatillas!

So far my sprout rate has been about 80% for brassicas. Tomatoes and peppers ~10%.

I'm just starting to see sprouts now- lupine, snow in summer, marigold, sweet william, aubrieta.

I'm definitely going to have nights in the 20's. I should still cover these containers? Or will the be all right in their milk jugs?

This post was edited by vermontgirl on Mon, Apr 14, 14 at 10:44

vermont girl: the only one I'm familiar with is marigold, which I usually don't plant til the soil and temp are warm, so I would cover. If you are in doubt, I would cover. When covering is a problem is if your containers are in the sun, and it is say 60 degrees out, inside the containers it is 80. "I actually checked.) and your sprouts will fry.

Vermontgirl, congrats on your sprouts. If you're expecting frost I'd just throw a sheet over the whole lot just to be safe. You don't want frost on the leaves -- that's what kills them. As for taking the lids off, you don't need to do it on the first warm day -- it takes sustained heat to fry the seedlings, and especially in your zone they need that protection until it's consistently warm.

In all the years I've been doing this I've lost one container to that, mainly because it was hidden and I didn't water it during a period of days in the high 70s. It was poppies, too, and they probably should have been planted out by then since they come up in early spring and seem to like the cooler weather.

And my containers are always in full sun -- I want them as warm as possible so they'll sprout as early as possible.

We just had 3 days in the 70s and I've finally got a couple of tomato sprouts -- Anna Russian, which is usually one of the first up for me, and Marianna's Peace. Also, all four tomatillos came up, which surprised me. No peppers yet, though.

Ellen, marigolds are tougher than you think. Mine were sowed on March 22 and are up and thriving now. I've sown them as early as Feb. and had great success with them, too. My petunias are up as well. The first year I ws, probably seven or eight years ago now, I did two containers, one petunia and one marigold. It was late Feb. or early March and I stuck them in an out-of-the-way spot on the patio and forgot about them. When the weather got warm I saw them as I was starting outdoor cleanup and was shocked to see thriving plants reaching the tops of the jugs. That's when I knew this method worked -- no fussing that year, no watering, no covering or uncovering and the plants were just fine.

Caryl