Obviously I need to be very careful to not over-order. Most of my seeds from last year are still good, I bet. I need to remember that the only seeds I should start myself (instead of just buying plants) are things where I want like, more than 3 plants of the same thing. So that's lettuce and stuff. I don't think I should bother trying to grow tomato from seed. I only have room for one or two tomato plants, and a plant costs about the same as a packet of seeds.
I do want to get the following seeds:
- Pole Beans
- Bok Choy
- Kale
- Leaf Lettuce
- Romaine Lettuce
- Arugula
- Peas
- Radishes
- Radicchio
- Spinach
- Swiss Chard
- Alyssum
- Coleus
- Nasturtiums
- Morning Glory
- Sunflower
- Zinnias
Oh crap, that's a lot.
The timing will be important... probably the first things to start are the Kale and the Radicchio.
So, I ordered a lot, and I'm going to go ahead and start some stuff this weekend. I really want to get some Coleus started, so I ordered a mix. They need to start 8 weeks ahead of when they go outside, but if I start them now-ish, like January 15th, I can transplant them March 15th and grow them as house plants for a while, because they're good in the shade, so they should be ok indoors. If I get enough of them, I can fill the whole patio raised bed with coleus, which will look amazing. I'll get another bag of Begonia bulbs, probably from Costco, and start them inside.
I was originally thinking this patio bed would be Begonias, Coleus, Elephant Ears, Caladium, Ferns, Hostas, Liriope, and anything else that I could think of to do well in shade. The Liriope are free, as long as I get around to dividing them, so that's good. But if I have 7+ different plants in a 12 square foot area, it's going to look insane.
So we got one flower- begonias, and the coleus will be amazing, if I can grow them from seed, they are practically free. The Liriope is also free, so... that's a nice combination of colors and textures. Elephant ears are so cool, to have these big, lush leaves, making the patio look like this tropical vacation. I might still get some and throw them in there. Hostas are kind if a cop out, and they're not really supposed to be in containers.
Oh my god, I love looking outside at all this snow... "Feels Like" -3 F. Last year, I was really fucked up about it. I just couldn't believe spring would ever come. I'm so glad I took pictures, so I can look at them and remember that things will grow again, and beyond that, things will grow like crazy if I let them. In the spring, when I see the first few bulbs come up, I could fucking cry. When I'm driving to work and the morning light shows those first buds forming on the redbuds, I do a little happy dance in my car.
Last spring I was in Irvine in early March, where they have Bird of Paradise in full bloom in the medians on the roads. I had a lovely hotel room with giant windows facing a pond with all these great plants, and I just stoop by the window gawking at everything. Then I had to go to work, and give a presentation in a dark room, "Hi guys, thanks for coming, it's too bad we can't have a training course outside today!" I said. I was met with confused faces. "I mean, it's such a gorgeous day..." I explained. "Oh, cause it's nice out." someone finally said. Yeah, you assholes. It's the most beautiful day ever. People on the east coast travel for hours to come to Longwood to see the plants you grow in the middle of the street.
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