Color me informal. No logs, no counting no measuring, nothin. I did enough counting logging and measuring at the bank.

just stick the gosh darn seeds in the dirt and wait.

Although, I also need to go more than 1 set of leaves, they kinda disappear if I do that.

:)

I've got so many places to plant and so many seeds to sow, I'm worried I might not be able to claim the informal title. However, I will do my best to get my seedlings in the ground on time and simply water when we don't get enough rain. I will not plant them in rows. I will not plant them in pots. I will plant them right in that good dark brown "dirt" that's been composting in place since last summer. And if they don't make it, well there's always marigolds and petunias.

Sewobsessed, just the opposite is true for me. I did the hunk-o-seedlings method a few years ago, but only did a few varieties. With only 125 square feet of actual garden space, I want to be able to get the most bang for my buck. I want as many kinds of flowers as I can manage. I don't really have room in my garden for more than 3 of each plant I sowed (46)... if I smoosh them together.

I live in a condo and only have a small patio so I "hide" my containers in a cold frame. If I want to sow a lot of different kinds, everything I do must be done on a much smaller scale. I don't have room for 46 milk jugs, or even two liter bottles. Besides, the HOA would have a fit!

You know, in the end it really doesn't matter HOW you did it, or what kind of records you keep, or how much you coddle... or not, the results will still amaze not only you, but your family and neighbors as well! The satisfaction you feel won't fade, it will inspire you to do it all over again next year.

I might be in between, with a definite leaning toward informal. I am careful with the actual sowing in the containers, because I don't like to thin seedlings. So I do try to keep count of the seeds, and sow in some kind of order - that way I can better tell if a sprout is a seedling or a weed. It also helps me keep track of germination ratios.

Other than that, the containers go out in the elements and I don't worry about them till spring... okay, sometimes I don't worry about them till they overwinter a season or two in my garage, lol, and THEN I finally plant them out.

I do keep basic records - date of sowing, how many seeds sown, date of germination, and how many seedlings.

I do have to admit to being amused at how some folks obsess over the littlest things, but hey, everyone WSs differently and everyone enjoys it differently, so that's fine. Whatever works!

:)
Dee

how do you do the tp pots?

Seedmama, you have inspired me! Off to the ktichen. Cheers to winter sowing slobs!

WAY informal, here. I work by this adage: "In order to be a good gardener, you have to be willing to kill a lot of plants"

Of course, I work with native perennials in huge quantities, and I don't dare get attached to a plant until it's at least three feet tall.

So, I try different things with containers, keep records when I am bored and have nothing else to do, and HOS at the first thaw in spring- even if it's going to snow again. If a container fails, I replant right over it, in the same soil. Sometimes I use small enough tins that I jsut scratch up the soil a bit, plop the whole thing on top and spread my leaf litter and wood chip mulcch around it.

I do watch what works and try to repeat it, and IO read actively. Really, I am still arelative newbie- I think this will be my fourth year, if you count the year I did like one or two tiny containers, and mostly lurked. Maybe it's only three.

Oh! There's a newbie freak out thread? Oooh, gonna have to check it out. :O) Bring back some memories, eh?

My first year was a disaster in record keeping until I said "Enough of this crap!! All your getting is a tag with your name on it and the date you were sown."

I do let them grow a bit before transplanting them in the gardens, but there's two reason behind that. One is I am known as one heck of a procrastinator, and two, I have a slug issue.

Hunk of seedlings? Best thing ever! Survival of the fittest! And if other gardeners don't like where I planted you, then tough! In my mind, pink does go with orange in a garden.

Frost coming and you are uncovered? Don't expect me to remember I took your cover off 'cause I'm busy doing soemthing else and you are the one who decided to sprout before this frost, not me.

No coddling, no records, no organization, no expectations.

Great results though!

Great thread! Thanks everbody for your inspiration. 2nd year and more prepared just throw and sow...LOL

I would definitely say I was an informal sower. The only records I keep are writing the name of the seed on the side of the jug when I sow the seed. Then out it goes to the back yard to be blissfully ignored until March. Then I run around like a demented chicken, trying to find places to put all the HOS. Oh, and I am attempting to direct-sow some larkspur and shirley poppy this year, which means I spilled the seed on the ground and trampled all over it.

Lois in PA

Most definitely I am. The only thing I track is which containers are annuals and which are perennials so I know where I will use them. And I do that by having two seperate snow banks for my jugs.

My containers get a variety of annuals, whatever comes up in the milk jugs. My DH always asks, so what color with the containers be this year? And my response is always the same "we'll just have to wait and see when they bloom!" LOL

Hmmm ... well, I'm not freaking out like I was when I was a newbie, but I DO keep records, especially with the veggies. Maybe you guys just have better memories than me, but if I didn't write stuff down, I'd make the same mistakes over and over again, LOL. This will be my third year, and I'm starting to fine tune my sowing dates for certain annuals and veggies, based on previous year's results.

When it comes to the actual sowing though, I'm pretty informal. Plant seeds in rows ... please! My fingers are too big and clumsy for that, even if I HAD that kind of patience! Sprinkle and go, that's my method, unless it's a very large seed, like a pea or sunflower or something.

So I guess I'm semi-informal, LOL!

Bonnie

Tiffy wrote: "And if other gardeners don't like where I planted you, then tough! In my mind, pink does go with orange in a garden."

Oh, absolutely! And that's what the white flowers come in handy. No color clash is ever so bad that shoving in a few white marigolds or some gypsophila won't fix it. All of a sudden everything looks sort of intentional and even garden snobs will no longer sneer that your garden "theme" is "spilled crayola box".

Lynda

Well I guess I'm certainly getting there.

Last year (first) I ws w/ my lap top on kitchen counter and that's after spending weeks looking everything up.

Last year I spent way to much time getting the soil the right consistency (something about brownie dough if I remember right) this year just ran the sprayer over the top for a while.

Last year I thought about starting a spread sheet to keep track of germination & sowing dates. This year realized I have not even looked at notes from first years germ. and such.
Last year I made sure my soda bottles fit back together nicely this year I crammed them shut.

Last year I kept back seeds just in case this year used them all.

Last year made up plant markers for each container this year realised way to many little plants for one marker(dah).

Last year kitchen a giant mess this year cleaned up in 5 minutes.

Both this year and last wished I had a huge tape dispenser for the $%%^3#$%%6 duck tape.

Both years still had a ball but, wished I was sitting out under a tree when I cracked open that cold one! lol

Did both hos and separated - depended on how long I'd been at it and size of seedling.

My first two years of WSing, I very carefully and patiently separated and transplanted each and every seedling. Yeah. Then I wore myself out keeping all those containers watered, and keeping the birds off my babies. Until I gave most of them away.

Since then, I don't sow as many seeds - I mean really, how much can you fit in a 20'x6' space full of pots, and still have room for your feet? What germinates just gets plopped into whatever space is available when they are ready, and anything left over gets given away. Makes for some interesting combinations.

So yeah, I'm an informal winter sower.

PV

Heavy Duty Tape Dispenser

:)

hah token thanks I've got an idea! lmbo

Going in to year 3 here and some things have gotten less formal while others have gotten more "organized"!!

My newbie stress about collecting and preppping containers - gone. Between what WSer Alberta has generously given me from her collection and what I have been able to save over the years, I am pretty set. Yes, I'll prep tons of milk jugs, but with my "tools" - soldering iron for holes and electric sissors for cutting - it's a snap.Learned the hard way that proper labeling (for me: paint pens ONLY, miniblind label inside, name, HT, color outside)right off the bat at prep time really is a worthwhile investment.

No stress at all about germination - 300+ containers last year and I think less then 15 that didn't germinate.

I have been cooking up some organizational plans for this year though.... I am really, really going to try to sort my containers in an alpabetical system so I can FIND things I am looking for.I use shelving units to hold the containers and I am going to laminate some alpha/leter signs to mount on them. Gone is any interest in keeping serious records (I have started about 4 different excel sheets but who has that kind of time..) but I will keep up what I have been doing, a date sown and plant name list, with all the empty seed packets tossed into a sandwich bag which is marked with the date and tossed in a box. This way if I want more info from the packet I can find it. Many of this seed packs come in trade with very little information on them. I invest computer time now, before sowing, getting the info I need written on the packet, so that when I sow I am not running back and forth to the computer.

Planting - HOS all the way, as early as possible. Trust Bakemom on this - the sprouts do so much better in the ground.

And irrigation, added last year after too many stressful summers, is a blessing when it's time to keep those babies alive and happy in the garden!!!!!!

Nancy

I guess I'm semi-formal. LOL I still keep a record of what I've sown, the date sown and the germination date. Other than that, I don't fret too much. This year I'm not removing the labels from my jugs. I space big seeds but I scatter small ones. Sometimes I cover the seeds, sometimes I just pat them down. I don't worry about watering until I have sprouts and I open up the jug. I usually don't get things planted when they have their first true leaves. Many of my plants spend way too long in the jug and then when time is running out I go around plopping HOS (whole jugs) hither and yon.

Pat

I was trying to figure out how to organize my planting. So I think what I will do is notice when things sprout. If I spread those plants out, I should have color throughout the whole garden all spring and summer. I am thinking that early bloomers will sprout sooner than summer/fall blooming plants. But then again, the hollyhocks I planted last spring came up before anything else and I still haven't seen a bloom. Thanks for telling me about the 2 year wait Ferry Morse.

I definitely lean towards formal. I have a scientific streak and pretty good organizational skills. Last year I created a spreadsheet called the "Master Winter/Spring Sowing Chart 2008". It lists the Container #, species name, Date sown, Date sprouted, # seeds, type of container, and some plant info. I love this chart and refer to it regularly. This year I'll use the same, with some changes. I want to add "Date Sprouted" "Date Planted", and drop some of the plant info, which I can just look up online.

I don't sow most seeds heavily and only plant a few things HOS. I prefer to plant the seedlings individually and give them some space. In my garden, pink goes with white, red, purple, etc. but NOT with orange. Hehe.

Despite all this, my gardening style is very naturalized. Except for the front gardens, which are more formal, because that is what people see from the road.

Terrene, your spreadsheet sounds very similar to mine, and I did the same thing, dropped plant info, to include plant out date, and bloom start date, but I think I still need another column for first harvest date for the veggies. That information is important here, where the growing season is so short.

... and Tiffy, I hate to admit this, but pink's not even ALLOWED in my garden, LOL! Well, a peachy pink maybe ... but that's it! BTW, your gardens are gorgeous, so don't take it personally.

Bonnie

Yes Bonnie, "Date 1st bloom" and the "1st veggie harvest" are good columns too! Maybe I'll add a column for the approx. "# sprouts" too, to get an idea of germination rates, and where I can write a big "DUD" next to the containers that don't sprout. :)

I absolutely love pink flowers, not so crazy about orange or blue. The occasional orange gets mixed with yellow-red-rust-brown, and I don't as yet have any really blue flowers.

LGS, the idea of mixing white in with clashing colors is an interesting one. I could see how whites, creams or maybe even soft pastels would soften the bold colors.

Yesterday, my preschooler helped me WS for the first time. We finished 20 containers, about gallon sized, with nice rows and as controlled a sowing as 3 year old fingers can accomplish; and I had my laptop - lol!!

I'm trying to be informal (less stressful with my helper) but do want to control what ends up where in the garden, so plant height and sun needs are important to me.

The HOS idea terrifies me, but I also have a toddler and HOS may be a more realistic planting approach for me come April-May.

This post is GREAT!!

OT - Bonnie, I have Costco pine nuts for you:)

I have a notebook to keep records: name, date sown ( & nsl notation if there is no seed left), date germinated, date planted out (this one only partly done, sometimes just a check). Last year I added the height to my jugs then grouped them by height when I was ready to plant out.

I plant so many containers (300-500) that if I didn't record anything I would be sowing the same thing over and over again. With that many containers I do not want too many of any one plant so have learned to sow lightly and plant out as HOS or individual plants depending on the plant.

When I get new seeds I look up information on them and keep that in a file on my computer. Easy to refer to as needed and don't need to be online. I no longer write the info on my seed packets as reuse the seed packets and hate all that erasing.

I have master lists of color, heights, light requirements cross referenced. Most of this I remember but like to be able to look it up easily if needed.

Also inventoried all my seeds this year. When I see which plants have survived the winter in my holding beds I pull those seeds to add to my trade list. Seeds are in alphabetized in boxes of perennials, annuals, veggies, ornamental grasses.

I am a logical person with scientific training and see gardening as one big experiment so love to sow new to me seeds or push the zone requirements or try it here instead of there, etc. Need to keep records to know how those experiments turn out. Also am a bit like a four year old...the doing is more important than the results. I know those two traits are at odds with each other which makes for an interesting experience.

Hi A-n-H's Mom! Wow that's awesome about the pinenuts. Unfortunately, I won't have any basil to make pesto with for 6 more months, LOL! Wonder what their expiration date is?

Bonnie

Wow, I'm trying to be organized. Definately nervous though. I have trouble growing grass in my back yard and the plan is to go nuts with my first WS.
I did get a peek at lgslgs' seed list and got inspired to do mine. It took a few days of typing and finding seeds here and there but I finished. Hopefully it will help me have faith that this will work and I can find the space for them all.
The plan is to follow the forums on when to sow, Sow hos if I can and once they are out let them be.

Alright folks..........all of you with spread sheets already made and close to "perfected", PLEASE SHARE THEM!!!!!!!! We newbies could use all the help we can get and a speadsheet that is working for some of you would be a great help. Thanks.

No spreadsheet, but I do use an Access database to keep track of my seed stash and what I sow ......... so, does that make me a SEMI-INFORMAL wintersower?

PV

I started out with a spread sheet. When I sowed on the solstice, I entered how many containers and what kind. I still haven't put that in the computer. I'm starting to think I won't. My next batch will not be sown until March, so I'll really only have three dates that I sowed seeds. And knowing what didn't germinate will be better than trying to keep strict records, I think.

I begginning to think I need at least a list of what I sowed, Im starting to disremember what has been doneand what's left......

:)
D

Stillwelljill (or anybody else), I would be happy to share my spreadsheet, please don't hesitate to ask! ;) I wouldn't say it's "close to perfected" - in fact, just made a bunch of changes to the chart from 2008 to 2009. The chart reflects my needs, but may not suit someone else. Here are the columns (yeah there are a lot, the chart is jammed full on an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper, and I fill in with abbreviation such as PS for part sun) -

No. (container #)
Species/cultivar
Date WS
No. Seeds Sowed
Container Type
Date Sprout
No. Sprouts
Date Planted
Date 1st Bloom
Cold Strat (cold stratification required and # days)
Wtlnd Status (USDA wetland indicator status)
Sun
Hgt. Feet

The chart can easily be adapted by deleting any of these columns or changing the titles. It is an Excel spreadsheet and would require some basic knowledge of Excel. Send me an email if interested.

hello
I can't say I'm informal eather
{{gwi:456293}}

I plant each kind of seeds in a diffrent 4" pot and lable them and log them in a note book and franticly check them to see who is sprouting when and log it. I then log how the plants do during the summer to see if I want to try that one again, or not.

I do plant the chunk of seedlings, sometimes breaking the 4" chunck into 3 or 4 peaces and planting them a foot or so apart. last year I planted over 300 diffrent seed packets most from trades and I had 113 germinate, not great numbers but some trades just don't have any viable seeds in the packets not nessisarily the falt of the person trading and some were older seeds that may have been too old.

I just love hearing about other peoples WS methods, it rilly helps to refine mine.

thanks everyone
michelle

Hi All,

Even though I am a Newbie, I know I will be an "informal" winter sower. I Have ADD and am informal about everything!

I doubt I will keep any records, either, as I lose just about everything.

Thanks Bakemom, Being "informal" sounds a lot better than disorganized, scatterbrained, or braindead!

Amy

Oops, I hope my previous post didn't offend. I was referring to myself as disorganized, scatterbrained,and braindead.(joking, of course.)

Happy New Year to everyone!

Amy

I was very informal last year, ghess I had alot of some things & not enough of others, when I planted out (I did the hunk-o-seed which worked great!) I didn't know what each plant requirements were,( some I didn't even know what they were, I just thought the name sounded cool ! LOL ) sooooo I had some really nice tall plants in front of some really short ones grrrr, & I had some sunny ones in shady spots. so this year I am getting to know my plants better, I done a plant fact sheet on the seeds that I have (so far I have done about 60 & still more to go) but it has a pic of the plant & flower, the height, width, climber, crawler,or just upright, annual or perennial, sun or shade, the zone, the common name & the scientific name, wet or dry soil, & where I have gotten the seed from.
I am taping the seed packet to the fact paper so when I winter sow that seed the fact paper will be right there with the seed so I can write on the back of the fact sheet, the date sowed & jug number & then hopefully I can keep up with the dates of sprouts coming up, & plant out & bloom dates & where in the yard they are planted at ! LOL
Last year I ended up with tons of zinnias, cloeme, marigold,& rose moss, but no sunflowers, I had 4 different kinds of sunflowers & none of them in the dirt Grrrr ! Not enough veggies for me either, so yes I am going to try to be more organized this year cause if it ain't on paper for me, well, I'm just lost !!!!
scatter brain jan ")

First year I was nervous, constantly on the forum asking questions. I got sick, very ill for months, 3 major surgeries, my husband ended up planting out all the containers. Had a pretty garden in the end. Did a decent spreadsheet.

Second year, finally healthy again. Seeds sprouted, planted out tiny, the lions share of them destroyed by onslaught of a million voles. Horrid record heat and drought May thru Sept killed a lot. Had a pretty garden in the end. Did a spreadsheet.

Third year, definitely relaxed. Things went well, all planted out by May or tossed in beds. No space left in beds, gave away more than I planted. No spreadsheet. Garden was pretty in the end.

Now in fourth year, haven't thought much about getting started. I figure garden will most likely be pretty anyway. Will think about it after the Christmas tree and junk are finally put away. Will plan sowing around what I see surviving in the yard through winter. Have found that many perennials stay at least partially green in winter if they're going to make it. I know I need to replace Rud Beckys and some others, will try a few new things too, but on a smaller scale. Spreadsheet doubtful.

Karen

Karen, I note the important part, "Had a pretty garden in the end".

wellllllllll....
I haven't stopped making records yet. I find that keeping records keeps me from buying more seeds, or rather, keeps me from buying something that my old brain has forgotten I already have and have put outside in a jug.

Other than that, I don't even want to see the jug, don't look at them at all, unless they are falling down a snowdrift (and even then, their frozen enough where that won't bother them either).

Linda

Karen... and as usual, knowing your garden, it will "be pretty in the end"... Hope you stay well

Carrie

"I find that keeping records keeps me from buying more seeds, or rather, keeps me from buying something that my old brain has forgotten I already have and have put outside in a jug."

Yes, Linda, exactly! I look at my spreadsheet and it reminds me that 52 varieties is way more than I have space for...! I caught myself looking through a catalog yesterday thinking I have no annuals, maybe 3 or 4 kinds.... WHAT THE HECK AM I DOING?!? Back to the spreadsheet... what can I add to that?

I have to put my w/s stuff away... you know what they say "about out of sight"!

Catalog? Buying?? What's that? I think you need a new addiction, Nancy Drew and Linda. Seed swapping!!!! I have a tiny yard and I easily passed 52 varieties in my first year of swapping. Have over a hundred types of seed this year and have NO CLUE where I'm going to put them!

I'm new to winter-sowing but I can guarantee I'll be casual. I do have a spread-sheet for all the seeds, but I don't think I'll bother with germination dates, etc. It will be all I can handle to plant, water and transplant.

Nancy - What's this TP roll thing? Sounds like something I would do at the pool, too! I carefully cracked walnuts at work all one summer for walnut shell Christmas ornaments. My co-workers won't even blink if I bring in TP rolls!

Diana Lynn

Totally informal here. Years 1 & 2 were spent recording everything...year 3 was the year I simply said "all I really need is a tag in the container so I know the height of the plant, otherwise, I really need nothing else" and I totally wing it now.
I've stopped collecting every container under the sun, and simply save all my milk jugs...have stopped cluttering up the ENTIRE front lawn and driveway, and 2 years ago opted for those larger cheap plastic shelving units to keep all my jugs on...I have a better sense of what works and what doesn't, so have gotten it down to a list of good staples that I'll do every time...that sorta thing.
I still try new things and should probably pay a LITTLE more attention, but the way I see it, I can always move the perennials in the fall if I screwed up in the plunk & run, or shovel-prune.
Those first couple-three years WERE an invaluable learning experience, though, and the learning will never stop. I still come here periodically to see what's new & exciting in the WS R&D Department.

I'm extremely informal but am feeling like a newbie again... I'm used to being able to plant anything basically and now that we've finally moved to our "retirement" home in Colorado, I have to start over! My favorites are the salvia's and agastache's and stuff that pretty much needs a bit longer growing season, so this year should be tons of fun! Anyone with advice, just send it along!!!

glo

Hi Glo! So you've FINALLY made it to Colorado. Welcome! It's a wonderful place to live!

I didn't start wintersowing until after we moved here, which is probably a good thing, since we moved here from a zone 7. My success rate may not be as good as some of the folks in the warmer zones. This is my third year, and my germination rate has been approx. 75% for the past two years. You'll definitely want to save anything frost tender until April, otherwise you'll have to hover over them everytime there is a frost. You didn't mention veggies, but if you are planning on sowing any of them, the only one I would not recommend the WSing method for are peppers. Our season is just too short to get a harvest. I've had great results with lettuces, spinach, peas, broccoli, herbs, and even tomatoes (as long as they have a DTM of 85 or less).

Salvias and Agastaches do GREAT here, so do things like Gaillardia, Achillea, Coreopsis, and cold hardy succulants like Sedums, Delosperma (Iceplants),and Hens & Chicks.

Good luck this year! You'll have to report back as to how things turn out.

Bonnie

Definitely informal now. I know where stuff generally is in my gardens and what the light conditions are, and so anything I ws is just tucked in wherever I think it might do best. I ended up with some gigantic rudbeckia triloba and hollyhocks at the front of one bed last year, but the only reason they stayed there was because I was a new mom and had other more important things to worry about. They'll get moved this spring.

When I started, I did keep a spreadsheet with species, date sown and date germinated as well as a note about whether the seed was new or old and the source of the seed. I wanted to be able to track whether anything was problematic with our MN winters, and to see whether any source/company gave erratic germination. I don't do that anymore.

My gardens are a hodgepodge of color that varies throughout the year. The only excruciating combination in my yard is a light blue iris that blooms with a cotton candy pink rose right next to a fluorescent orange poppy. The poppy is going to have to get booted.

My first year, I planted Mexican Sunflower Tithonia right in the front... It was almost 8 feet tall... oh.. the newbie stories i can tell you...

Carrie

Hmm... newbie stuff? Yarrow! How was I supposed to know that what looked to me like dust, was actually seed? OMG! Talk about a hunk of seedlings! It was a nightmare!

I was left scarred from that experience... I now have a deep seated phobia about Yarrow... just typing the word YARROW makes me shake. Any small, next to invisible seed makes me nervous.... I wish seed packets came with a red label warning about size or lack there of.

Where's Bakemom? I bet she could talk me out of this...

Loved reading this thread:)

-(A beginner gardener obsssessed w the thought of spring and gardening w a small balcony w 10 planters Lol!)