If you moistened the soil when you sowed the seeds, and your weather has been forty or below for the most part, it is very unlikely that your containers have dried out. It probably is just the soil surface looks dry, but there is still moisture just below the surface. Try not to worry. Especially with herbs. They are great wintersowing choices.

Martha

Appreciate the comforting words. That would make sense. I'm assuming this is likely true for annual and perennial plants that handle my zone's weather conditions.

Please - i need some hand holding through my first winter sowing! I got clear plastic milk jugs from Starbucks, put drainage slits on the sides near the bottom and cut the hinge almost all the way around. I filled one about 4 inches with Miracle Gro potting soil (I considered the seed-starting mix, but the ingredients seemed identical and I thought the plants could remain longer in the potting soil), soaked and drained it, sprinkled (or lost) five teeny tiny columbine seeds on top and patted it lightly. I taped the hinge shut, put the cap on, and put it outside on my terrace to wait to be hit with the sub-zero blast we're expecting tomorrow here in the Hudson Valley, NY. Should I have left the cap off for air?? I read conflicting instructions about leaving tops open, closed, making slits in the bottle? What's made me nervous about this project is that to my shock my pricey pack of seeds from Swallowtail contained only TEN seeds! I mean, wouldn't there be a hundred seeds in a single columbine? In any case, it ratchets up the pressure to succeed so thanks for letting me know how I'm doing.

Definitely caps OFF - that allows moisture to get into the jugs! Everything else you did is fine, but you should put holes in the bottom of the jug. If you can, just hold up the jugs and stick a few holes in the bottom with a heated screwdriver or some such - your seeds won't be disturbed . Holes in the bottom will allow for better drainage.

Yeah, seeds can get pretty pricey. You'll be collecting your own seeds soon, so the initial investment is worth it.

Good luck with your wintersowing!

PV

Garden (WS) albums

Roger and thank you!