I can't answer your question regarding your specific environment, but here in good old Columbus, Ohio, I just scatter and forget. I know that a lot of people winter sow them, so perhaps you might want to check out the Winter Sowing Forum for more info. Seems there were some elevated gardeners there.

Good luck.

Columbines self-seed all the time, so sow away! Fresh columbine seeds need a cold period to germinate, though, so they won't germinate this year, for the most part. Older seeds seem to be able to germinate without a cold period, though, so a few could germinate this year. I find they are quite slow germinators, and require about a month of warm (after the cold period) before they germinate.

will something eat them before they have a chance to germinate? i stuck some about 1/4 inch down in the ground a few weeks ago along with some Japanese toad lily seeds. Will they last until they can be overwintered, or will they rot?

Surface sow them...on top of the ground. Winter weather will put them at the right depth for germination.

I agree with Susan--I direct surface sow in spring as soon as the snow melts off the bed, or in fall before snow. The only problem with the fall sowing is that if you need to rake out the bed come spring, you'll lose some seeds.

I guess the partial answer to that is sow a ton. Luckily the plant produces a ton. If I had a limited amount of seed from a trade or something, I would winter sow. (in containers pursuant to forum instructions).

I have read where folks sow on top of the snow and let ma nature "plant" when the snow melts. I guess you would run into potential critter problems and spring raking problems there as well, but it's interesting nonetheless.

Ok so I think I am going to put the seeds in the freezer for a week and sow soon. Would that be a bad idea? They are burpee seeds and I'm having luck with everything else I've sowed from Burpee this spring. What do y'all think?