Yeay! Glad to see your seeds are doing so well.

I LOOOOVE Japanese Maples-- I had one once but the dog chewed it! They look wonderful. Do you know the variety?

Jodi: Though I don't post here often...I do lurk around and enjoy reading your posts and taking your "garden tour". Your dungeon growing area is looking as though it is producing fabulous results. Enjoy!! p.s. If your Basil smells like the one I have growing, I know why you enjoy it so much. Thanks for the view. Ross.

Wow Jodi!! Where do you find the time to tend to all this?? Amazing set up. Glad that the first set of seedlings are sprouting. Second set will be mailed after tax day (post office is crazy now...and I have them all hand cancelled).
Keep up the great work!
:-)
Kristi

Thanks, guys and gals! I'm home all day, so I have plenty of time to care for everybody... although, once the season breaks and things get warm enough, I'll be overloaded with work!

I'm not sure what variety of Acer those are, Ryan... I know there's a tag somewhere... if I remember, I'll check and write it down. I don't think they're anything too rare or expensive, though.

Thanks, Ross! Nice to have you here... you don't have to lurk, though! We're always glad to have additions to our group! That particular Basil is called 'Compactum", I believe... it's supposed to grow in a compact form, sort of bushy and short. I thought it would look better in pots for sale. Some Basils are sort of leggy. This is really short and leafy.

No rush, Kristi! I know how the Post Office gets a few times a year... holidays and tax time are nuts!

Right now, I'm battling a tad bit of mold and a few fungus gnats that have taken up residence in the herbs flats, but I've got my trusty 3in1 spray, so it's no big deal.

This is the first year we've grown perennials and herbs on this large of a scale... it's more work than I thought it would be, but it's fun! And, if we can make a few bucks out of it, so much the better!

Thank again! I'll post more pictures as things change.

Wahooo! It may be cold outside, but everything inside is having fun. I don't know how you don't go crazy with all those growers. I am overwhelmed, but I keep buying...LOL!

Good growing!
-Frank

Looking good! love that Japanese maples, too bad it won't grow here. : (

Jodik--

I don't discriminate between rare or expensive. If the trees are Japanese Maples, they rock-- no matter the type!!! I'm impressed you got them to grow so well-- Japanese Maples are often not easy to grow from seed. Do you know if they'll be red or green?

One of the best japanese maples I ever laid eyes on I think went by the name katsumura (I mightbe totally off)-- but it has INCREDIBLE fall foliage.

Aw man... now I might consider a japanese maple. I don't have room for this insanity.

Jodi, you're doing a great job-- good luck with it all.
RMR

Thanks, everyone! It's really not that much work... bulbs are very forgiving, and since they almost thrive on neglect, I can leave them be while I tend to other things. A quick watering every other day is about all the seed flats require for now... though I am beginning to bump the larger seedlings into 4" pots now. That's where the work comes in.

There will be lots more work when it's time to cart everything out of the Seed Dungeon and bring it outside!

Ryan, we didn't begin with Acer seed... we cheated and bought about 100 tiny seedlings that were just breaking dormancy. Some went a bit south to be grown on by a friend with more room, and he'll sell them locally where he's at. We kept about 30, or so, to sell here. Some are growing with pretty chartreuse green leaves, and a few are leaning toward reddish colored leaves. Trees are not my specialty, so I don't really know that much about them. I just potted them and water them. :-) I'll check on the variety today... I'm pretty sure they have a master tag that came with them.

You'd have room for a Japanese Maple if you grew it as a bonsai, Ryan... c'mon, you know you want one! ;-)

I would Jodi, I would... but I'll exercise self-restraint and just have to wait! I really do love those trees, though. The Denver Botanical Gardens has several bonsai in this form, and I'll have to settle with those.

Its snowing again here in Colorado, Jodi! So watch out, another round of snow will likely sweep through. Put your mittens on!!!!

RMR

Oh, wonderful... just what we need... more winter. Not!

Ryan, you really must learn to keep all this snow and cold to yourself! Some of us don't like it! ;-)

I was surprised to learn that there are so many different varieties of Japanese Maple! Some are really different. I love when they're used as a focal point in a garden area, and have short plants or ground covers planted underneath. It's a stunning look! And of course, they look great as bonsai specimens, too.

One of my favorites is the lac-leaf japanese maple. They look like a cloud of color. With leaves that delicate, though, they last for five minutes in the dry Colorado wind.

The Ledebouria is very unusual, Jodi. You'll have to keep us posted on how that one grows.

As a bonsai tree indoors, though, you could grow any type of Acer without leaf damage. The trick would be doing all that's necessary to make it into, and keep it, a bonsai.

Surprisingly, the Ledebouria is very easy to grow! It's near the east window, so it gets plenty of light, and I water it occasionally, when it gets dry. That's it. It's no more difficult to grow than a Hippi. The flowers are nondescript and small by themselves, but if a whole pot were blooming, it would be spectacular! I'll post as everything grows and changes.

Jodi--

Why don't you try it? Bonsai really isn't that difficult. If anything, it requires large sums of patience. Just last weekend I got out one of my Port Afras and was about to hack it to pieces in an effort to style it but the "inner tree" wasn't speaking to me....so I did a little trim here and prune there and it still remains the same-- so now I look at it, ponder it and have yet to come up with what the tree might be telling me in terms of styling (Though I have a good guess but haven't brought myself to cut THAT much off yet).

Acers do require a dormancy-- and they get lanky if kept inside too long.

Well, actually there are a few in the batch that have potential. I've been watching them grow, and I'll probably end up choosing one to play with. One little one in particular has caught my eye... if it continues to grow nicely, I'll snag it before they all go out for sale.

Patience, I have... and I've been reading about bonsai because I find the process so interesting. I think I could probably do ok with one of these. I do already have a few nice pots... hmmm... we'll see how they grow. The only thing that scares me is the deciduous part. I'd hate to kill it because I didn't do something right to keep it alive over winter.

Man are you organized. My seedling flats are scattered on porches, throughout the garden. Seeds are growing in plastic containers, plastic cups....and labled! HA! I think those are ??
I love Japanese maples but the majority of them won't live here. There is a place in Dallas that specializes in them. We have a couple that are being transformed to
bonsai now.
Ledebouria is a really easy plant, I've got it in the beds and it also survived Ike. Also called African hosta.
I'm partial to African blue basil, it can take the heat. Ike finally did it in, the plant grew in the front yard for 3 years.
Tally HO!

I have to be organized this season... we're setting up to sell most of what's growing in the Seed Dungeon! Normally, I don't have enough labels to mark everything, and for some reason I'll never figure out, I keep thinking I'll remember what's planted in each flat or pot. Ya, right! I never do, and I end up having to wait until the plants gain some size before I figure out what the heck I planted! I prefer being organized, but it's not in my nature to always be that way! I'm an Aquarius... artistic, disorganized, a dreamer, laid back... if I sit too long, check my pulse! :-)

But seriously, it's much nicer to have everything lined up, tagged, and be able to properly start the plants in a halfway decent environment!

Bulbous plants have always fascinated me, and Ledebouria is no exception. When I first received the piece of plant, it didn't have any roots. Kitty told me it would root easily, but I worried that it would die on me... many things do, and I just don't have rooting cuttings down pat yet. Larry looked at this little guy, and said that he had a feeling it would root in and do fine. Well, they were both right! I staked the little guy upright in a pot of soil, and before I knew it, it was sending out a flower spike and blooming! Now, it's got a few offsets surrounding it, and it's ready to be moved to a larger pot. I love this plant! I've researched it, and I found out that there are several different varieties, each with slightly different leaves and flowers. I'm hoping to eventually get other types!