Update...

I did pot up the Cleomes and the Forget Me Nots today.  I couldn't have waited any longer. The Forgets were looking like the sprouts were thinking of turning brown. There was some dirt on the paper towel but I don't think that was it. The Cleome seedlings were beautiful. They were both germinated for about a week.

I also thought I would try my luck with some older seeds. The package date is for 2013.  They may or may not have remained in a cool, not humid place. We shall see. The Marigolds I tried to germ a few weeks ago did not take at all. I have Dahlias, Alyssum, Dianthus, Ageratum, and Delphiniums trying to germ. I may be waiting a couple of weeks on some of those, according to the package. I am running out of room and containers. lol Yet...I can't resist planting more. I think this is quickly becoming an addiction. Or an obsession in the early stages. ;)

I will update more tomorrow and maybe do my first YouTube video. We'll see. It's getting late. Good night and God bless. :)

Introduction of sorts on my other blog...

From Bits of Blessing...

I am also working on something else very exciting. Well, I'm excited anyway! lol   I have finally been able to say, "Let's get this gar-den started, right...Let's get this gar-den started qui-ckly." If you are an 80's or 90's child, you are probably hearing a song right about now. If not, maybe I just can't type a tune in a bucket. lol

Yes. Plants. I love gardens. It is a micro garden so far with not many varieties but I have one growing!! Whee!!  I started with Zinnias because I heard they are super fast to germinate. My son is doing a science project and I find it very cool. I already was going to start my little seedlings but this gave me a great reason to jump into the process faster. :D  He has 3 identical pots with Zinnias but different soils.

Currently, I have Zinnia sprouts (VERY high germination rate!), a few African Daisies (not sure if the seeds didn't like me or the conditions but I do have a few sprouts),  Cottage Wildflowers, Snapdragons (they are so TINY for seeds!!).  I am going to be planting the Forget Me Nots and Cleomes tomorrow.  I have started germinating them with the paper towel method. I love doing them that way!  Before when I tried in just dirt, I was frustrated because they took a bit of time and I was impatient. I didn't see any progress. I also had them in direct sun and shallow starts.  They probably dried out and/ or didn't have enough room to start rooting. This way changes the game completely. I can see the sprouts full well and can let them get a head start before planting.  I don't waste time planting bum seeds either. I was disappointed in the African Daisies. They are beautiful but most didn't germ for me. I am also using an idea that ties into my son's science project.

He is doing a soil study with diaper gel crystals mixed into the dirt to see if the soil holds water any better or in any way helps the plants. He had to have 3 soils. His first was normal soil and the third is sponge soil. Hmm. I had to think about that for a moment. Interesting concept. I thought that the sponge would be similar to the diaper but too bulky and would somehow not work. He thought the sponges inside would take all the water for themselves and the plants wouldn't get any water. On the contrary, his results are showing favorably for both the diaper and sponge soils. The normal soil is growing but not as quickly. The plastic wrap (greenhouse effect) has been taken off of the altered soil but the normal soil has not yet reached the plastic yet.

I had already heard about the diaper soil before when I was attempting to start my plants. I was pretty sure it would work. I am using the diaper soil on my plants as a trial as well. To get them to start more quickly, as his assignment is timed and my excitement couldn't wait either, we also used the Jobes fertilizer spikes from Dollar Tree. All 3 pots had them. Equal footing. Per a suggestion by a trusted friend, I broke them into 4 so it wasn't a waste or too shocking for the plants. I put them in mine also. Well, in the Zinnias and Daisies. I think I may have overlooked that step on the Wildflowers and Snapdragons. I will check tomorrow when I pot up the other seeds.

The Snapdragon seeds were so dadgum tiny, like the tip of a ball point pen (or smaller!) that I got lazy putting them in the dirt. This was partly because I put so many onto the paper towel to germ and partly because the size was making it difficult to separate them without damaging. It was a very fine process. So, having heard about the layers that are pre-planted and you just put under the soil, that is what I did with the other Snapdragon seeds. So, half the planter is hand planted and half are done like a planting mat. :p  We shall see how that works! On one of the paper towel videos I watched on YouTube, Lark mentions that if the seedling starts to grow into the paper towel, you can just tear that piece of towel off and plant it too. That way you don't damage the seedling. I have only had to do that with a few of the other seeds.

That's about all for now. I will try to post again tomorrow or the next day. For the meantime, I will post the video I was talking about, just in case anyone is interested. I will post about the diaper soil as well. :)

I know that some will say diapers are not a good solution because of chemicals, etc. I am sure there are organic versions of both the sponges and the diapers. I wouldn't personally use the diapers in any type of food plant or garden. I don't think our zinnias seem to have a problem with it but I don't plan to eat them. ;)

Welcome to my humble blog! :D

Hello all!
I am new to gardening. I have wanted to grown things for a long time.  However, due to not having enough time, resources, or knowledge, it hasn't worked out until now. Now, I am determined that nothing should stop me from it. :)   

It's so amazing to me. I mean, you put a seed in dirt, water it, and it grows!  How simple is that?!  I know that sounds silly because of course that is how it works and always has.  Yet, when you consider how crazy, hectic, and messy the world is, it's just that simple. Plant it and it grows. How refreshing!!  No beaurocracy, red tape or rudeness. No political correctness, no hate, no rioting. 

They are plants. They seek sunshine and digging their roots in the dirt. They love to be spoken to and they just want to thrive. I think we can relate. That is why we go to the beach. To be in the sun and breeze, maybe hit some water and dig our feet in the sand. We want to enjoy ourselves and feel alive and not just trying to survive. To thrive. No wonder gardening is therapeutic. lol  

I encourage you to join in. I can plant things on my own but it's more fun to have people to share it with. It is my hope to swap information and to build each other up through ideas, techniques and maybe some seed shares along the way. 

I am working on a YouTube channel as well. Same name but easier to follow in video. I haven't totally figured out my system yet but am working on that. I hope to be up and running soon. I also hope you will follow on the journey, wherever you are on yours. 

I am starting with a microgarden for now but am really interested in some unique and unusual plants. It's not that nobody has ever grown them or indoors but probably few do. I am really interested in growing some fruit trees, coffee and orchids. My son has his heart set on a cacao plant. ;)  That will all come later. For now, it is flowers with hopes of veggies and herbs. I just want to stick my toe in the water first. Then I can learn to dive into the deep end.