Chinese lantern is slow to sprout, so expect it to take 3-4 weeks. This makes it an ideal candidate to start in flats or pots where you can control the growing conditions. If you tried to grow it from seed in the ground, the odds are that the seeds rotted, were eaten by an insect, washed away or were blown away before they could germinate.

Some people have luck with Chinese lantern seeds by sowing them on a prepared seed bed in fall and then having them sprout in Spring. That's another option you could try. It works better in a protected seed bed where wind and rain erosion are not a problem, and it works because the seeds are exposed to the kind of alternating wet/dry/hot/cold stratification conditions that some seeds need in order for germination to occur.

If you've never trying the winter sowing method, you might find it ideal for Chinese lanterns. Wintersowing via the method described on the website linked below is an ideal way to start seeds in winter in controlled conditions. They sprout when the conditions are right, and by the time your soil is warm enough and the weather is stable enough for you to transplant seedlings in the ground, you'll have lots of little wintersown seedlings waiting to be transplanted.

Learn How To Wintersow at Wintersown.Org

Keep in mind that Chinese lanterns can be highly invasive if you have soil and growing conditions that they like. I grew it once and once was enough for me. While I like some invasive plants because they are hardy, tough and endure our wildly changing weather, this one was too invasive for me.

Seed of Chinese lanterns is readily available from most retailers that sell flower, veggie and herb seeds. You usually can find it on seed racks in big box stores in Spring, where it generally is in the section of the seed rack devoted to perennial flowers. You can order the seed online from any of the seed retailers that carry it, which would include pretty much any of the major seed retailers.

I've linked Swallowtail Garden Seeds, which has seed of Chinese lanterns, as I particularly appreciate the quality of the seeds they sell and how quickly they ship. However, if I walked into a Wal-Mart in January and saw the seeds on the seed rack there, I expect that the seeds would perform equally well.

Chinese Lantern Seeds at Swallowtail Garden Seeds

Some of the plant varieties that have given me the most trouble when I first tried to grow them from seed have ended up being some of my favorites over the long haul, so if you want to grow Chinese Lanterns don't give up on them. Just be sure you don't put them too close to any other plants that are extremely important to you because the Chinese Lanterns will spread and take over the surrounding area.

Good luck,

Dawn