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Hi June! How exciting that so many of your coneflower seeds germinated in your grow room! The great thing about coneflower seeds is that they typically don't need a cold stratification period (unlike many other perennial seeds). Also, I love that you are growing the milkweed. It's so fun looking for Monarch butterfly chrysalides on milkweed plants. I have fond memories of doing that with my kids when they were younger. 🦋🐛💗

Hi Julie! What a great idea about winter sowing parsley. I may just have to try it for all the great reasons that you shared! 🦋💐🥰

Hi Carmelita! How exciting that this is your first year with winter sowing! That feeling when you see seeds sprouting ➡️ PRICELESS! 💞 Did the seeds that you sowed start germinating? In other words, do you now have plants growing in your milk jugs? If not, you should be fine with putting the milk jugs outside. If they need water, just spray some through the hole in the top of the jugs. Please let me know how things are going. 🤞🏼 Since you probably don't get snow in Texas, they key will be to not let the milk jugs dry out, especially if you don't get any rain.

Hi Ingrid! I'm so excited to hear that you'll be winter sowing for the first time this year! It sounds like you have some great seeds that you will be winter sowing. Thank you for sharing that most of your gardening is done in containers. One of my big goals this year is to do more container gardening so that I can have pretty pots and productive vegetables on my porches and bedroom balcony. I hope the videos that I make for my containers will inspire you this season. 💞😊

Hi Cindy! I hear you! It's so nice seeing them all tucked in and snug during the winter, knowing that there will be life in them soon enough. 💞❄️

Hi Tammy! How exciting that you have started your winter sowing. I'm hoping to start my seed starting later today or early tomorrow morning. It's a great time of year to still be gardening! 💞😊🌸

Hi Maureen! Thanks for sharing your method for winter sowing. I've heard people use the number method and it seems to work well. I really should try it some time. It sounds like you're planted some great flowers so far! If you don't mind, I'd love a copy of your spreadsheet. If it's in Google drive, you can share it with me (view only) at budgetgardeningwithvitaloca@gmail.com, or you can email a copy to me at this email - whichever is easier for you. I truly appreciate it! I agree with you that organization is key with all this seed sowing. Thank you, friend! 🥰🌼

Hi John! Definitely give coneflowers a try again. It's so worth it. Would you be using seeds that you collected or seeds that you bought? Just make sure the seeds are at least a few years old so that germination is good. 🤞🏼😊

@ it was with seeds I bought.

Hi Peggy! Thank you for sharing your winter sowing method. Using a soldering iron to poke holes and then using pipe cleaners to keep the top piece down in place is a very clever method! ✅🙂

I love this! "Let's go!" is right. Winter sowing is in full swing now, my friend! 🥰🪷

💞🪻❄️

You're very welcome. I'm glad that you remembered to check on your geraniums. I feel it's easy for us all to forget to check on our overwintered plants, so I love making videos like this to remind my gardening friends. 💞 How exciting about your onions! 😊🧅 I'd love an update on all your geraniums come Springtime. It's always fun to experiment with plants, especially if you can get some on sale or even free. I've had a lot of luck growing geraniums from seed (which I bought as well as seed that I collected). Here's a video I made showing my process for sowing geranium seeds: th-cam.com/video/7BSW7iWQq9M/w-d-xo.html. Good luck with your geranium seeds. It's fun to watch them grow and fortunately they are not that hard to grow from seed. 🪷

Hi Carla! Oh how I love those kitties so much! They are BEGGING me to make a how to grow cat grass video just so that they have cat grass to nibble on. 😹 I'm glad you bought some heat mats for this year. I hope you have better luck with your marigold seeds. 🤞🏼

Thanks, Liz! It's so great to see how differently we all garden based on our location and growing zones. I think that's the beauty of different gardening TH-cam channels is that we can always learn something new (or two, or three....). 😂

You're very welcome, Lisa. Unfortunately you cannot overwinter SunPatiens as bare root dormant plants. You can, however, overwinter them as a houseplant in a very sunny south-facing window or under grow lights. I'm currently experimenting with overwintering them in my unheated garage with no supplemental light. They are still alive but I don't expect them to survive the whole winter. We'll see though. It'll make for a good experiment, anyway. 😊🌷

Hi Nancy! We've been pretty darn lucky for not having a ton of snow on the ground. We currently have an inch of snow but very, very cold weather. I've been hunkered down indoors but getting ready to start seeds which is fun! I'm glad you misted your geranium roots - so important to do once a month. Thank you for all your continued support, my friend! 🥰

Hi Krista. Thanks so much! 💞 I've never done it before, but the best way to propagate rhododendrons and azalea are either by layering or by cuttings. I'd love to give it a try this year! If I do, I'll be sure to make a video on it. 😊

@@budgetgardeningvita Great, thanks! We are finally moving onto our new acreage this March, except our forest is mostly softwood. Our zone in NS is similar to yours, 5B/6A. Will be very interested in any tree starting (hardwood or softwood, the tropical storms we get easily blow down the fir trees so replanting stronger trees over time is one of my top priorities ), and shrubs that will bring more birds :)

Hi Celeste. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful story about your mom and her geraniums. This warmed my heart so much and I think it would be so nice to add some geraniums to your yard to honor your mom. 🥰🌸

Hi John. Oh wow. You (as well as your niece) had a tough night. I'm so sorry to hear that. You are so right that people forget to drive in the snow and it can be awful. Your niece is so lucky to have an uncle that cares so much for her. And the vet clinic is so lucky to have your niece there for them. I'm sure they appreciate her. Working in a veterinary clinic can be very stressful. I hope you both are able to get some well-deserved rest today. And please don't be sorry about commenting on non-garden related topics. We are all human and it's nice to share our feelings. Have a blessed day, friend! 🙏🏼

@ kind of proud that she was the tech the Doctor wanted to stay and work with her on the emergency case and not one of the full time ones, not knocking the others but think it says something about Kendra’s skill set and dedication.

Hi there! I only soaked the roots for 2-3 minutes. This was my first year soaking geranium roots. I usually just spritz them with water, but honestly, I just feel better soaking the roots as I feel it gives the plant enough water to sustain itself for another month. 😊🌼

You're very welcome! I love making videos like this to remind my gardening friends to check on their overwintered goodies. Happy holidays to you as well! 😊❄️🎅🏼

Hi Carla! Sorry to hear that you've been unable to get out in your garden. You'll be back out there soon enough, friend! We have some very cold weather right now plus some snow, so I'm doing indoor garden-related tasks. But you better believe that as soon as it warms up again (high 30 to low 40 F temps), I'll be out there doing something! 💞😊

Hi Gwen! Since wood ash is high in pH, you don't want to add a lot to it. I don't usually measure it out, but I did some research to give you a better answer. You can add a few handfuls to every 6 inches of compost. 🪵 It's sounds like you've been busy doing garden-related tasks, which is great! What are some seeds that you plan to winter sow? 😊🪷

@budgetgardeningvita I'm winter sowing coneflowers, poppies, columbine, turtle head and bachelors buttons. I always find more to do as I go lol

Hi Gwen. I stole this verbiage from the Colorblends website as I think it explains it the best. I typically move my bulbs "in the green". 😊🪻🌷 The ideal time to move or divide daffodils is when the foliage has collapsed and has turned mostly but not completely brown. For most daffodils, this time comes in late spring or early summer. By then the bulbs have stored up the energy they need to grow and bloom again next spring, but the leaves are still there to tell you where the bulbs are. And if the leaves are still attached to the bulbs, they help you track down the bulbs as you dig. What if you can’t or don’t want to wait until the ideal time? Daffodils can be lifted any time after bloom. Truth be told, they can be moved while they are in bloom. Dig with care to ensure that the foliage is not cut or pulled away from the bulbs. Replant immediately and water thoroughly. Daffodils moved while “in the green” may not be happy about the disruption. They will likely flop and turn brown prematurely. But chances are very good that they will survive the experience; many will bloom the following spring.

Hi Julie. Thanks so much! 🥰 The deer definitely do some damage to my plants but it's not horrible. This year I'll be experimenting with a few ways to repel the deer and I'll be sure to share how that goes in future videos. 🦌

No worries. I'm glad you were able to catch this video. Today I begin winter sowing. I'm looking real forward to it! 😊🌸

You're very welcome. ☺️ Yesterday I cleaned out a nice big area of a flower garden that's full of grass that now I can access easily and pull the grass out whenever the ground thaws out. I'm actually looking forward to that project now. 💪

Thanks so much, Maureen! I appreciate your comment about my teaching experience and how I try to bring what I've learned into the way I make my videos. With my high school students, I learned not to assume anything and that step-by-step teaching was key. It's hard because with videos, some people want the quick and dirty answer, especially in how-to videos. I get that because sometimes I also want the quick & dirty answer. 😂 But I feel that sometimes important information can be omitted which is not good either. It's a balance. With my seed spreadsheet, I list a bunch of information, such as planting depth, weeks to sow before avg last frost date, if a heat mat is needed, plus an "other" column, that may have information like if pinching is needed. My goal is to be able to share that spreadsheet with my TH-cam friends as soon as I get it updated, which I hope is soon. 🤞🏼 It sounds like you have a great system in place for your spreadsheets!

You're so welcome, Celeste! Thank you for your support and feedback. I truly appreciate it. 💞 I think it's a good time to reset ourselves in terms our gardens and start prioritizing garden goals and tasks. I'm not that great about that so I'd like to be better. I'll be sure to keep everyone posted on how I do with my winter chores. I'm ready for the challenge! 😊🌸

Hi Darla. Oh wow! You have a lot of fun garden projects in the works! I agree with you that gardening is exhausting but it definitely is rewarding, too! It truly is therapy for my soul. 💞😊

Hi Linda! It will feel so good to clean up my garden glove stash. Out of all my winter garden projects, that will be the quickest one to tackle and will be satisfying, too! Your comment on duct taping your glove made me chuckle! 😂 I definitely have a lot of wildlife here (deer, bear, raccoon, skunk, opossum, etc.) but they do not seem to bother with my compost bin. I think the key is to make it at least 4'x4'x4' and to hide kitchen scraps right in the middle of it and then cover them up so that the critters don't smell them. 💞💐

@budgetgardeningvita thank you. I'm gonna try it!!

You're very welcome, Kibibi. Hydrangeas are one of my favorite flowers as well and I'd really like to add more of them around my yard as a backdrop to my garden beds. Propagating them from cuttings is a great way to get free plants! 😊🌼

You're very welcome! 😊🌸

Hi Sharon. Thank you for the suggestion. Last year I did tours maybe 1-2 times per month. For 2025, I'd like to do tours (if possible) weekly since things change so much in the garden. I love sharing how the garden changes so fast. 😊🪻

Thanks, Nancy! Yesterday was 40 F and I did a little more in the garden which was nice. For the next 6 days, it's going to be very cold (2-32 F) so I'll be busy indoors doing some fun garden tasks. It's good to pivot depending on the weather. I will winter sow my first milk jug tomorrow (12/21) and hope to get that video out 12/22. I can't wait to start! I will be starting with all my perennial seeds and will be doing on video per seed type so that I can also do a thorough plant profile. That way, I can also give updates on each of those plants once they germinate and when it comes time to pricking them out, fertilizing them, etc. I'm looking forward to sharing my process and journey. 💓

Thanks so much, friend! 💐

Hi Maureen. You're very welcome. It sure is going to get cold starting tomorrow. Brrr! I worked out in my yard the last two days knowing that I'll be inside the next 5 or so days. 🥶 What did you winter sow? I'll be starting soon enough. I have a ton of perennials that I will be starting with. The question is... which one will I start with first...? 💞😊

@@budgetgardeningvita I have lots of seeds that I have collected so I just picked 2 (Lupine and Cherry Brandy Coneflower) I winter sow way more than I need but then I donate to some of our local fire department plant sales, friends, and family. It's just so much fun to do. I look forward to seeing what you choose to winter sow.

You're very welcome, Carmelita! The garden definitely keeps me busy but in a good way. 💞💐

Thank you! It sounds like you're having some crazy weather over there. Do you grow plants from seeds indoors or using the winter sowing method? I'll be busy soon enough with both methods. Today will be a high of 40F so I'm going to clean up a flower bed this afternoon before the temperatures plummet. It's going to be a high of 18 and low of 0 Fahrenheit on Sunday. Brr! 🥶

@@budgetgardeningvita wow zero thats darn cold. I have been starting less early mostly warm weather tomatos. start mostly petunias, seed daliahs. I been eating more salsa, the food comes in glass jars short fat ones to tall slim jars perfect for seeds. You manke me say save money so been saving jars for next year. what I like about them they are all uniform size number the jars put the info on a spread sheet. Oh I just use hot water and deluted dawn to wash my trays and pots. Then make a mixture of hydrogen peroxide 1 to 1 with water. Spray the clean trays and pots with the peroxide mixture before I plant my seeds. Have to say one last thing, Merry Christmas, and Holiday greetings to all

@michaelh7506 Happy holidays, friend! 🎄🎁❄️

Hi there! I made a video showing the process of dividing creeping phlox. Please check it out at th-cam.com/video/ISunm0kHzL4/w-d-xo.html. I'd be happy to make an updated video next spring. 😊🌸

Thanks so much! I've never sprinkled pansy seeds on the ground during the winter so I'm not sure how that would work. For next year, I suggest that you sprinkle some pansy seeds on the ground during the late summer so that the plants can germinate and put on some growth before winter. I'll try and make a video showing the process so that you can follow along. For this year, you can try winter sowing and/or sowing your seeds indoors (or both if you can). I've sown seeds indoors and given them more than plenty of time and I still cannot get nice big plants with blooms come late winter / early spring. I've had much more success with my pansies that drop their seeds, but it's still worth a try. Now you've got me thinking. 😊 I think I'd like to experiment with sprinkling some pansy seeds outside now, putting some pansy seeds in winter sown milk jugs, and starting pansies from seed indoors, and seeing which ones perform the best. It's worth the experiment!

Thank you! It sounds like you've been busy. I can't wait to sow seeds in milk jugs as well as indoors with you! 😊 For LED shop lights, I suggest getting the linkable ones. I didn't get those and in hindsight I wish I did. Don't forget your timers also. Zip ties are great for cord management. I hope you have a great day as well, friend!💐

If you go to her channel and tap on “Playlist” and look for “Plant Nursery” she has several videos there. 👍

Hi June! Here's a link to my Plant Nursery playlist of videos: th-cam.com/play/PLx94OYQcbu9pPJhyM0z0CexlBUxguU1pU.html. I answer a lot of your questions in those videos. After you check them out, please feel free to ask additional questions. For pots, I look for free/cheap pots on Facebook Marketplace. Also, some big box stores and nurseries recycle pots and give them away for free, so check those out as well. I really try to keep my costs down low so that I get the most profit that I can from my plant sales. 😊