Gardening... the "Flower" bug has bitten!

[mwhite]

Are there more than 1 hummingbird at the feeder at the same time? Mine are greedy, if another one shows up to feed he gets ran off.

Mercy YES! I've counted as many as 25 in one area but I have three feeders all on an old set of monkeybars along with feeders for the other birds. Seems that they are just always whizzing around that monkeybar frame!

[cheley]

OMG I Love MoonFlowers....but I have the worst luck with them...will not grow for me!!!!!!! Please send me some seeds

[mwhite]

OMG I Love MoonFlowers....but I have the worst luck with them...will not grow for me!!!!!!! Please send me some seeds

I certainly will!!! The photo above is ones that grow on a bush and I have some of both pink and white that are vines. Plan to PM your mailing addy sometime in the next month when I collect fresh seeds. I'll just send you a collection of all three. Below is a photo of the pink vining ones....mixed with some caladiums and clematis. The white vining ones haven't bloomed yet.

[cheley]

I certainly will!!! The photo above is ones that grow on a bush and I have some of both pink and white that are vines. Plan to PM your mailing addy sometime in the next month when I collect fresh seeds. I'll just send you a collection of all three. Below is a photo of the pink vining ones....mixed with some caladiums and clematis. The white vining ones haven't bloomed yet.

mmmmm, totally scruptious!!!!!! Thanks sooo much...but wait, should I wait till spring too plant outdoors??? Germinate inside first? Or should I throw them in the ground in fall

[mwhite]

mmmmm, totally scruptious!!!!!! Thanks sooo much...but wait, should I wait till spring too plant outdoors??? Germinate inside first? Or should I throw them in the ground in fall

It really depends on your zone. The bush variety is perennial here in zone 7. The vining ones have to be replanted every year from seed here.

The trick to germinating the vine seeds (they are large) is to pour boiling water over them and let them sit overnight, then place them inbetween wet paper towels inside a closable baggie, in a dark area (I place mine in the cabinet under my kitchen sink), check them every few days to see if they've sprouted and plant about 1" deep when they sprout. Otherwise, planting them directly into the ground is a "maybe they will/ maybe they won't" germination method.

To germinate the bush type, follow the vine type method without the boiling water and overnight soak. This method works for just about any seed. I've even grown Amaryllis bulbs with this method.

I would definitely wait until about a month before the last frost to start the germination, then once the frost is gone you can plant them into the ground.

The seeds that I send will be fine until Spring and you can just keep them in the packets in a dry location until then. Heck, these plants were grown from 3 yr old seeds so they don't go bad easily.

[cheley]

It really depends on your zone. The bush variety is perennial here in zone 7. The vining ones have to be replanted every year from seed here.

The trick to germinating the vine seeds (they are large) is to pour boiling water over them and let them sit overnight, then place them inbetween wet paper towels inside a closable baggie, in a dark area (I place mine in the cabinet under my kitchen sink), check them every few days to see if they've sprouted and plant about 1" deep when they sprout. Otherwise, planting them directly into the ground is a "maybe they will/ maybe they won't" germination method.

To germinate the bush type, follow the vine type method without the boiling water and overnight soak. This method works for just about any seed. I've even grown Amaryllis bulbs with this method.

I would definitely wait until about a month before the last frost to start the germination, then once the frost is gone you can plant them into the ground.

The seeds that I send will be fine until Spring and you can just keep them in the packets in a dry location until then. Heck, these plants were grown from 3 yr old seeds so they don't go bad easily.

Thanks for the info BTW I am in zone 5 I will send you my address.....

[mwhite]

Thanks for the info BTW I am in zone 5 I will send you my address.....

Got it and will mail these as soon as the pods are ripe!

[mwhite]

Thought I'd share this photo!

Cheley, I am going to start pulling off Moonflower Vine seed pods this next week....pm me your mailing info! OOPS, I just remembered that you already have!!! (Old age...that's my excuse)