Japanese Maple "Emperor 1"

I was peeking in the jugs today and spotted this one, It was wintersown on Dec. 21st. No true leaves yet on it but it came out with that red look already, I wintersowed several different types and am very excited for these. I would like to have around 5 different types of them in the yard hopefully it all works out. The rest of them I will give away to people :)  Join us at Seed Traders A fun place to trade seeds for Heirloom Veggies,Flowers,Shrubs and Tree's on Facebook and trade Seeds with us and you to can wintersow you some Japanese Maples 



Wintersowing Update

Today I went out and peeked down in the bottles to see if I had any sprouts,well guess what I got sproutage and some even have their true leaves.Here is what has sprouted so far

Basket of Gold Allysum

Spirea

Yellow Gallardia

Lupine

And I have a Japanese Maple that has sprouted

I took the tops off to give you a better look

It wont be long and I will be wintersowing Tomatos and Peppers then the tender anuals

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Wintersowing

This is going to be a demonstration on How to WinterSow.We start wintersowing as early as the wintersolstice in December.Some seed need cold stratifying (meaning to go through cold-warm periods)to coax the seed to germinate,just as in mother nature when a plant reseed's itself. 1st the reason we wintersow in recyclable containers  is to protect the seed a bit,If you direct sowed,meaning to plant the seed in the flower bed,It could very well get washed away from heavy rains, or seedling may come up in a less than desirable place,It could be eaten by a insect or bird or other.You might not be able to Identify it come spring and accidentally weed it out.You could grow the seed inside under lights.This is expensive and brings gnats into the home and seedlings would need to be  hardened off(meaning to be acclimated to their surroundings)You would also lose seedlings to damping off(a fungal disease common to seedlings and seed grown inside)Also with wintersowing,you don't need to scarify or presoak a seed..Mother Nature takes care of that...

WinterSowing

It's an alternative way of germinating the seed as to emulate mother nature in a protective setting,No hardening off,No damping off,No expensive lighting.No scarifying,No presoaking seed.Here's how.Start by prepping a recycled plastic container.There are many different types,MilkJugs,Soda bottles,Juice containers,Take-out containers,just to name a few.

Start with container

Remove screw top and throw away!!

• Cut holes in the bottom of recycled container and one hole in the center for inserting scissors

Cut container in two pieces,If using a bottle or jug.

• Cut V's in side of bottle,this allows the top to fit back on and can be raised or lowered for ventilation.
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• Have your seeds ready and you can label the top.I use a paint pen,it doesn't fade out in the elements.
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Add soil, Rule of Thumb,at least a thumbs length,I'm using Miracle gro potting soil,any good quality potting soil will work

.Wet soil and let drain to the consistency of brownie mix and add seed's

Add the top and set it out and forget about it

Now here is what you get come Spring

Its That Simple and Addicting

That's it there are many different variations of wintersowing,this just gives you a general ideal

For more information Go to Wintersown.org
               If you want a chance to win FREE seed's to wintersow,check this out GetBusyGardenings Free Seed Giveaway

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Winter Solstice

Alright the Winter Solstice is upon us,that means it's time to wintersow those seeds that need the cold stratification process.So I've done a few containers and will be doing more all winter.I've wintersowed Beautybush and tatarian maple and some shrub roses oh yeah and some Japanese Maples

Well that's a start anyways,no more till after the holiday's.I got excited and wanted to play in the dirt so this was fun and most importantly,very stress relieving...Happy Holidays to everyone and be safe...