First Seed Order of Winter

The first seed order for 2020 went out to J. L. Hudson, Seedsman last week. Such an interesting website - well worth a look for those interested in uncommon plants as well as old favorites that are hard to find.

I ordered old-fashioned snapdragon seeds, seeds for a begonia that is supposed to be hardy in Zone 8, and seeds for fragrant Maiden Pinks. I also ordered shrub and tree seeds: native Sweet Bess (Calycanthus floridus), Japanese Plum Yew (Cepalotaxus harringtonia), Pineapple Guava (Feijoa sellowiana), and a special Butterfly Bush (Buddleja tucumanensis). Some other unusual seeds were for native Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium) and a mix of hybrid Pitcher Plants (Sarracenia).

For citrus root stocks to use for grafting, I ordered Hardy Orange (Poncirus trifoliata) seeds, and for our upcoming hypertufa projects, I ordered hardy Sedum ground cover seeds.

Bare-Root Babies

This week brought two groups of bare-root seedlings. The first, a group of Loquat seedlings, came as a gift from our friends, Alma and Agnes. The second, a group of Cherry Laurel seedlings, came in a delivery from Sharon's Florida.

The Loquats, or Japanese Plums, grew from seeds Alma planted and grew out. Her family and friends say that she can grow anything from a seed or cutting. I planted ten pots with the seedlings she brought.

Loquats, Eriobotrya japonica are 

also known as Japanese Plums

Loquats, or Japanese Plums, are originally from China and produce fruit similar to apricots. Seedling loquats take seven or eight years to produce fruit. Green Dean's Loquat article on Eat the Weeds tells the history of the Loquat and offers interesting recipes.

The University of Florida IFAS Extension article, "Loquat Growing in the Florida Home Landscape," gives information about Loquat care and some of the best named varieties. These Loquat seedlings may someday be rootstocks for named-variety scion wood.

Cherry Laurels, Prunus caroliniana, are native shrubs

The Cherry Laurels (Prunus caroliniana) were ordered on eBay from Sharon's Florida, a nursery in Brooksville, specializing in Florida native plants. A Cherry Laurel hedge is evergreen and will grow 25 feet tall in shade, providing privacy for the Homestead and food and shelter for the birds.

These fifteen pots of Cherry Laurels from the bare-root seedlings are doing well.

Winter-sowing Begins Soon

The winter-sowing season is upon us.

The shortest day of 2019 and the dawn of 2020 will soon be here. I'm already looking at seeds saved in my organization system (more on this later) and seeds to order from my favorite nurseries!

Here are links to some of my favorites:

• Fedco Seeds: My all-around go-to favorite for vegetables, flowers, herbs, and native plants. Fedco, a cooperative of seed savers, provides excellent seed and service. 
• Strictly Medicinal Seeds: Highly-respected site. Richo Cech, an authority on herbal medicine plants from around the world, is generous with his knowledge. Browsing his plant descriptions and reading his shared articles is time well spent.
• Mary's Heirloom Seeds: Informative site with great prices on small orders. Service is exceptional. I order from Mary's when I want seeds fast!
• Renee's Garden: Very fine seed in varieties well-adapted to home gardens.
• Select Seeds: Heirloom flowers, many saved from being lost to time.
• American Meadows: Annual and perennial seeds plus information to match plants to growing conditions.
• Prairie Moon Nursery: Informative website helps to match native plants with specific growing conditions. Wide selection of quality seed.
• Southern Exposure Seed Exchange: A new favorite for me. Now that I'm gardening in Florida's Big Bend, I find that I need plants that are well-adapted to my region.

I also like these nurseries:

• Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds: A stand-by for non-GMO and organic seed.
• Park Seed: South Carolina nursery. Seeds for unusual plants offer an economical choice for building a garden.
• Burpee Seeds and Plants: My first seed orders were with Burpee and I still order from them every year. My Lemon Grass seeds from Burpee were very successful.
• Johnny's Selected Seeds: High quality seeds for serious market gardeners.
• Victory Seeds: A fun site to browse, focused on home "Victory Gardens."

Some nurseries I've wanted to order from for some time include:

• Swallowtail Gardens: The available variety is inspiring.
• Seedsavers Exchange: I hope to order from, and eventually contribute to, this group. A future post will review Seed to Seed, the authoritative source on seed saving by Susan Ashworth and the Seed Savers Exchange.
• J. L. Hudson, Seedsman: I have a growing list of seeds to order from J. L. Hudson. So many exciting possibilities!

As I begin my orders for 2020, I'll be sure to update this list with any sources I've missed!

Tiny Miracles

Who would have thought that Echeveria were so easy to start? These "babies" are growing from leaves placed in cactus mix in a 3" clay pot (in January? - wish I had recorded the date!). The "mother" plants came from a little dish garden we bought for just a few dollars from a roadside stand.

In the center are some Jade Plant leaves, started at the same time, that haven't rooted yet.

You can just barely see the tiny leaves of a Dragon's Blood Sedum stem at the far right. We got this little cutting from the Canopy Road Cafe, on the Apalachee Parkway, when we met our friends for brunch on February 10.  I forgot about the little cuttings for a week before I planted them, but just look! Miracles.

Succulents

These little cuttings are for a friend at work who loves plants. She was sick last week and I thought some new babies would cheer her up!

Coleus

Growing up in south Florida, I liked coleus plants. Having coleus there is easy - just root the plants you like in water when you want more. But in West Virginia, having coleus plants was a bit more of a problem. Even though they were inexpensive to buy, choices were limited to local sources, and keeping them over a long winter was a bit of a challenge for me as a new gardener.

When I read about buying coleus cuttings from mail-order sources in The 20-Minute Gardener,
I was intrigued and I kept the idea at the back of my mind to do later. I wondered whether I could grow coleus from seed but thought it would be difficult since I had tried once without success. That time, I probably waited too long before I tried planting my seeds.

This year, I bought 'Wizard Mix' coleus seed from Burpee and did not wait to get them started. As soon as the seeds arrived, I planted them in a 6" self-watering pot. That was on January 7. By January 11, tiny dots of green started to appear on the surface of the soil and by January 13, little leaves had started to form.

They are so cute! Now, I'm inspired to do more with coleus. Here's what I turned up from a search for mail-order coleus suppliers.

Seeds:

• Burpee Seeds and Plants (has 9 varieties of coleus seed)
• Swallowtail Garden Seeds (has 43 varieties of coleus seed)

Cuttings:

• Glasshouse Works (has 126 varieties of coleus cuttings)
• Rosy Dawn Gardens (specializes in coleus - offers many varieties organized by types and colors)

Progress

A lot has happening at the Homestead this week.

Rick surprised me with three adorable, fat, baby Pindo Palms from Just Fruits and Exotics. Here they are in all their cuteness!

Starting Seeds

So far this year, we've started twenty kinds of seeds - and there are many more to start! We're using Trudi Davidoff's outdoor winter-sowing method to start vegetables, herbs, flowers, early greens, and native plants, and pots and trays indoors for the micro greens and house plants.

I've started a "2018 Seed-starting List" and will be adding pages and pics as we go forward.