MF/MG planning

22 years ago

Hi everyone,

Extreme Newbie gardener here. I have a great idea for next spring, I'd like to do moonflowers and morning glories on my balcony (I live in an apartment.) Basically at this time a year I want to plan for it and see if I can't get pots at cleareance prices since the growing season is almost over. Basically my questions are:

how large of pots should i be looking at to grow them along my balcony railings, also what type and shape?

I want to do moonflowers along one side and morning glories around the other side, one side gets a lot more sun then the other, which should get the sunnier spot? And, lastly, when should I plant the seeds? I want to have them established before I transfer them from inside to outside, and should i plant them in small pots and then big pots or start in the big pots, and how many seeds per pot? Wow, I know, I'm asking a lot, but I really don't know what I'm doing and I want to plan this out now so i have a plan to stick to. I've been recently bit by the gardening bug, and its becoming an obsession :) I think the MF/MG combo will be a great backdrop to my now inside trees come next spring.

Thanks so much for any and all help!

Lune

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Comments (2)

MoonEwe
22 years ago
Hi there.

As long as your pot size isn't very small you can go with about any shape. I've discovered that moisture loss is a concern with my potted plants, so I line them with plastic inside so the pots don't absorb all the moisture and require almost daily watering which I can't always find the time for -- poke a hole or two in the bottom for drainage. Moonflowers like water and FULL SUN. Plant them on the sunnier side or they'll never bloom...they like it HOT too...so I'm not too sure how they'll do in your climate. Morning glories aren't as fickle but if the other side of your apt is too shady, you might have issues with little to no blooms. You could plant them both on the same side and have them intermingle.

I start my seeds indoors about 4-6 weeks ahead of the time they will be ready to go outside without the possibility of frost. I get excited around FEB and start too many seeds inside and by the time I can move them outdoors I usually have a viney mess from having tried to keep the vines tame. MG/MF grow pretty fast so I'd not sow them more than 4 weeks before moving them. I start my seeds in cell packs or peat pods, and they're very easy to then plop into pots or the gorund, but if you don't mind moving big pots around you could certainly just start them in the big pots so you don't have to transplant later. You can space them as close as you want--sprinkle them around or place them a couple inches apart...and cover with about 1/4 inch of soil.

All in all, MG/MFs are super easy to grow and they can take over if not kept in check...I'm sure you'll like their rate of growth.

happin diggin
GoddessLune
Original Author
22 years ago
Thank you so much for your response! I think I have it all planned out in my head now, and from what I've heard I wont kill these plants, which is always a concern for me. I'm going to get so excited about it, it's going to be hard to wait until spring. I've even picked out the type of MG I'm going to plant with the MF, the Star of Yelta type, they're a very deep purpley blue, which will contrast so nicely. One other question though, if I get my hands on the seeds now, how should I store them until spring?
Thanks again!
Lune
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