Winter Sowing Successes and Failures

    Below is the long list of results I had with winter sowing for the first time in winter 2009/2010. Out of about 230 containers I sowed, 23, as of yet have NOT germinated. I dont consider that too bad. I did get loads of nice stuff that i have been busily planting out. With still loads more to do. Winter sowing sounds hard to believe, almost too good to be true. When thinking about whether to try it or not, i kept thinking it was going to be too difficult, I wasnt going to be able to keep 100's of containers watered, or it just wasnt going to work. I have read on GW where some put them out in the thousands. I thought in the beginning I would reach no where near 100. Well after sowing a handfull of containers out here and there over about 5 months, it was a breeze. Didnt take hardly any time at all. then my worry about keeping them watered. in that 5 months, i watered maybe 4 times this spring. I didnt obsess about it. just took my waterhose out and dribbled water in each container. Then on days when i was really feeling lazy (which is pretty frequent), I just set it to spray, and run it back and forth over the tops of the containers as it it was raining. Not as good, but it got me by. This has to be the easiest method to sow plants by the 100's or even 1000's there is. Thanks to Trudi at wintersown.org for coming up with this. If you love to grow your own plants from seed, you have to try this out. You will be amazed!

Seeds that did NOT germinate, at least as yet:
I will give them another month just in case.

Anchusa Dropmore Blue
Aster purple
Aster purple ribbon
Aster Schone Von Dietlikon
Blue Thimble Flower
Caryopteris summer Sorbet
Chrysanthemum Clara Curtis
Coneflower orange
Cosmos- all
Echium Blue Bedder
Florence Fennel
Gaillardia Burgundy
Gaillardia Red Plume
Gaillardia Summer's Kiss
Golden Chain Tree
Hakoni Double blue balloon flower
Helenium yellow
Heliotrope Marine
Hollyhock figleaf yellow and peach
Joe Pye Weed regular and chocolate
Marigold Citrus
Salpiglossus
Silene orientalis

Seeds that germinated, and I still need to plant out:

Agastache Korean Mint
Allium neopolitanium
Alyssum Carpet of Snow
Aster Tiger paws
bachelor buttons
Balsam
Bellflower, White peach leafed
Blue pimpernel “Blue lights”
Butterfly Weed, orange
Caryopteris Worcestshires Gold
Cineraria Stelata
Coreopsis Early Sunrise
Dahlia Hello bronze
Delphinium Blue jay
Delphinium larkspur
Dianthus raspberry swirl
Dianthus Sooty
fever few virgo
Foglove, dwarf Foxy
Foxglove, strawberry
gaillardia
Geum Rivale
Godetia Amoena
Gomphrena soft pink
Helenium red
Helenium red
heuchera marvelous marbles
Hibiscus Pinot Noir
Hollyhock Chaters
Hollyhock mix, rose, red, yellow
Hollyhock peach
Hosta mix
Hosta Sagae
Jacob's Ladder blue
Larkspur Kingsize Scarlet
Laura Bush petunia
Liatris
Marigold safari yellow
marigold Scarlet starlet
Marigold Sweet cream
marigold, orange from McDonald's
Marigold, yellow from McDonald's
Melampodium butter diasy
milkweed, swamp
Nasturtium Alaska
nasturtium cream Sickle
nasturtium Empress of india
nasturtium milkmaid
Nasturtium Whirlybird
Nicotian Crimson king
Night Scented Stock
Penstemon “Lipstick”
Penstemon Cobaea
Petunia Double Madness Rose
Petunia Hurrah Blue
Petunia Ramblin Red
Poppy , California
Poppy, pink
Poppy, Shirley Red
Rudbeckia Cherokee Sunset
Rudbeckia indian Summer
Salvia Splendens
Shasta Snowlady
Shiso
Spirea, blue mist, Black knight
Sweet Alyssum
Thyme
Tithonia
Tithonia Fiesta Del Sol
Wallflower, siberian
Zinnia Aztec Sun
Zinnia benary's giant
Zinnia Cherry Queen
Zinnia Dreamland red
Zinnia Envy
Zinnia Exquisite
Zinnia magellan Coral And Cherry
Zinnia peppermint Stick
Zinnia polar bear
Zinnia Profusion Deep Apricot
Zinnia profusion fire
Zinnia Purple prince
Zinnia, tall

TOMATOES: Some of these guys are 10"tall right now, also some were sown indoors.

Black krim- 2
Black plum- 2
Brandywine PL: 5
Caspian Pink- 2
Cherokee purple- 3
Early girl- 2
Ladybug- 3
Mortgage Lifter- 5
Sungold Cherry- 2
Supersweet 100's- 5

Seedlings/plants that are planted out and doing very well:
Remember these plants were put out in clumps called HOS. So there are several in each clump. And some i sowed in a couple of containers.

Agastache blue Fortune
Agastache golden jubilee
Alyssum Gold Dust
Ami Visagna
Antirrhum Rembrandt
Ballerina Sea pinks
Balloon flower, tall pink
Bellflower, giant
Bellflower, purple Clustered
Bellflower, white peach leafed
Calendula Bon Bon
campanula peach leaf bellflower Blue
campanula Superba
Canturbury bells
Carnation, cardinal
catchfly
Cineraria Stellata
Coneflower, purple
Coreopsis Blue Butterfly
Coreopsis Early Sunrise
Coreopsis Sternthaler (from 2004 seeds)
Coreopsis Sunray
Cornflower Dwarf blue
Cosmos Double Rose bon bon
Daylillies, OP
Dianthus Eastern Star
Dianthus raspberry
Dianthus Siberian blues
Echinacea Berry Pow Wow
Echinacea White Swan
Feverfew Flora pleno
flax, blue
Foxglove ( 100's)
foxglove, dwarf Foxy
gaillardia Arizona Sun
Gaillardia oranges and lemons
Garlic
Gypsophilia Convent garden
Heuchera unknown
Hollyhock, Chaters Double icycle
JMG Cameo Elegance
JMG Chocolate Silk
JMG Fuji no Murasaki
JMG Gray mist
JMG Hige Red Feathered
JMG Tempest
Jupiter's beard
Larkspur blue butterfly
Larkspur kaleidoscope
larkspur rocket
lavatera trimestris Pink beauty
Lavatera Trimestris Rose mallow
Lupines
Lychnis Abbotswood Rose
Mallow Piroette
maltese Cross
Malva Moschata Alba
Malva Mystic Merlin
MG Red Sunsmiles
MG, Heavenly Blue
Money plant, White variegated
nasturtium Climbing Spitfire from Renee's
Nicotiana Hot Chocolate
Nicotiana Lime green
Penny Black
Penstemon Barbatus navigator
Poppy Dark pink fringed
Poppy dark purple fringed
Poppy laurens grape
Poppy orange
poppy, annual hot pink
poppy, pizicato
Popy red mix
Rose Campion Angel's blush
Rudbeckia Cappucino
Rudbeckia Cherokee Sunset
Rudbeckia Double gold
Rudbeckia indian Summer
Rudbeckia Tiger Eye gold
Rudbeckia ToTo
Salvia blue Queen
Schizanthus Angel wings
Shasta Crazy
Shasta Snowlady
Shrimp plant
Sidalcea Elsie heughs
Sidalcea pink mix
Sidalcea, pink dwarf malva
Snapdragon, giant tetra mix
Snapdragons Candy Corn
Veronica Blue Streak
Wallflower bedding mix
Wallflower fairlady