I have direct sown many varieties of native annuals that have naturalized quite well, some seed always drops and germinates. My success is usually 100% on these. Since I don't have a large field or acreage, I dead head them in late fall after they freeze and dry them in large grocery bags, crush down when dry and then I find a place to disperse the extra seed, which I always have in great abundance, these bags are stuffed like pillows with hundreds of seeds. If I didn't I would be overwhelmed the next year with volunteers.

I also direct sow the easier native perennials such as echinacea with the same good results.

I direct sow most of the seed from a pack or trade but save a few seeds to sow in a jug for insurance in case the ones in the ground don't come up. Direct sown seed if successful usually does better than the transplants in my experience but I don't have the grass competition you mentioned.

Direct sowing native seed in fall or early winter works very well here in central Oklahoma, I've done this for several years and I keep adding new species. Its interesting to see it all develop and have new varieties of flowers each year along with many surprises because I often forget what I planted. I have easy maintenance season long color and its fun.

Once established, many seeds will come up in early fall around your original plants, winter over as rosettes or small plants and take off in spring. Its simply a matter of getting them started on your property, then you are set each year. I always have to thin them out in spring.

I direct sowed some allium seeds too but plan to sow a few in a covered pot for insurance. The only native seeds I typically winter sow in closed containers are perennials or shrub seed that need three months of cold stratification or that I have very few seeds of. I've winter sowed various penstemon, Sphaeralcea ambigua (globemallow), Blackfoot Daisy, Zinnia grandiflora, Mirabilis multiflora (native four o'clock) Winterfat, Mahonia haematocarpa, Four Wing Saltbush and many others.

I'm also sowing some perennials needing only warm temps indoors in a big sunny window. Some have germinated already. I enjoy doing that each winter and get a head start.

I'm impressed GreatPlains1, I never could grow Zinnia grandiflora from even a plant. I lived near Chelsea, Ok, and you ?

I'm in OKC close to downtown. We drove up close to Chelsea last spring. There was Indian Paintbrush blooming in a solid red mass for miles along the highway at the time. I've never seen it that thick.

I'm trying the Zinnia grandiflora seed for the second year outdoors. I had no luck last year but am trying again. I sowed some in sand among gravel on a slope and some in a jug again.

A difficult one is Blackfoot Daisy and I had planted seed a couple years ago in both a jug and the ground. Last spring one finally came up in the ground. Another "dormant" batch of seeds in the ground that didn't come up last year is Castellija. Its possible I might get one or two this spring.

Two years in a row I tried sowing seed from Cenizio (Texas Sage) and had no luck in my jugs or indoors warm. Then last year I ended up with them self sowing all over the front of my property and had about 30+ of them coming up. Some natives need a couple seasons to germinate or seem to just wait around for the right conditions so I usually direct sow many of them along with the covered pots or jugs. Maybe it was all that rain?

One thing is for sure, there is no way I am keeping a winter sowing jug around for two or three years so if there are some seed planted in the ground, my chances are still open. I think some of my mystery plants I get are seed that has been in the ground for a while. Native seed often has a very long viability life.

This post was edited by GreatPlains1 on Mon, Dec 23, 13 at 22:49

I would love to direct sow the way you do, but I mulch heavily to keep weeds down, and I worry I would weed out some sprout that I didn't recognize. I wintersow so I can plant the sprouts in a recognizable patch with the mulch pulled back until the babies get some size on them. When I get around to it, I try to stick labels near each patch, so I don't plant something on top of something else. Maybe, as my garden matures and there is less opportunity for weeds to take over, I will leave more areas clear of mulch and do more direct seeding.

Martha

docmom, My annual weeds are usually the same each year that I can pretty much tell a weed. If I don't recognize a seedling, I wait to see. Winter sowing in jugs is usually successful but not always so I often try various methods with the same seed. Sometimes direct sowing is the better way.

This post was edited by GreatPlains1 on Sun, Dec 29, 13 at 22:42