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14 responses total.

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i usually end up bying small plants from Franks, since i cannot afford 
anything else :)

most of the time i get small plants from the farmers market.  i can never
get seeds to grow properly!  i also do alot of bulbs...:)

 i've only tried seeds once -- larkspur. They were spiny -- i don't think they
 grew well. don't know if i did something wrong, or it was the type of seed. In
 my small experience, i like growing from palnts that are already started. They
 seemed to do wel

I've mostly purchased small plants from Frank's or grocery
stores in the past (except for a largish Norfolk Island Pine
that stood in for a Christmas tree last December), but I've
become very interested in sprouting things.  Aside from
starting some of my own vegetable plants from seed (tomatoes,
peppers, etc...) I want to try a couple of houseplants from
seed.  Coleus and Rosemary are first on my list.  I have some
coleus seeds for a variety called "Molten Lava."  The pictures
on the seed packet are quite extraordinary.  I've read that
rosemary is difficult to grow from seed, but I'm looking
forward to the challenge.

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I ordered a couple of APS units from Gardener's Supply.  APS stands
for Accelerated Propagation System, I believe, and consists
of a styrofoam with pyramid shaped holes where you put your seed
starting medium, and then beneath that is a tray that holds water,
and a capillary mat that makes contact with the bottom of your
pyramid holes.  This keeps the soil/medium constantly moist without
drowning your seedlings in too much water.  You don't have to refill
the tray more than every five days or so.  This should prevent
accidental drying out of the seedlings as well.  A see-through
plastic mini-greenhouse cover sits over the whole shebang, keeping
in the moisture.  They recommend that you take it off once the
seedlings are up, though.

The whole unit is fairly inexpensive, so you might want to consider
replacing your yellowing mini-greenhouse.  They also have mini-greenhouse
setups at Franks for dirt cheap, though they don't have the capillary
mat watering system.

As far as fertilizing goes, I have read that seeds don't need any
fertilizer at first, because there is sufficient food packed inside
the seed for germination.  When the seedlings have their first set
of true leaves, a very dilute solution of fish emulsion and kelp
can be applied.  I'm not sure why your New York seedings seemed
to thrive better than your Michigan seedlings.  Perhaps you used
to plant them in something with fertilizer already in it?  I'm
using a seed starting medium from Gardener's Supply right now.  It
has milled sphagnum moss and fine vermiculite in it.  Seems to 
work well, and smells very "earthy" when wet.

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The veggies I seeded in mid March are doing well, and last night 
I planted seeds in a mini greenhouse for 15 kinds of flowers.
This particular mini greenhouse cost less than $4, by the way,
at Frank's.

I've been acquiring plants at a good clip lately.  Bought a number
of really interesting things at the Ann Arbor Flower Show.
More on that in a later item.

Well let's see. I get my plants from all kinds of sources.
Some from Frank's, some from Buider's Square (gardenia that died)
some from catalogs - Breck's, Spring Hill etc. (advice : NEVER order
from Michigan Bulb Co. - theysend the roots late, separately, they substitute
the ones they dont have, and by the time you try to plant, the roots are
practically dead and dry. And they dont refund after 15 days or something.
And then they bombard you with junk mail  : 10 MIL sweepstakes etc.)
I recently got two huge plants from this little sale near the flea
market in Ypsi - enterprising guys who brought plants from Florida
in their truck. Very healthy plants.
I also bought a couple of plants at IKEA in Maryland - they are still alive.
Some I inherited from previous owners, roomates ...
And some that I have no recollection at all of where they
came from.
I did get a few from the Eastern Market in Detroit too.

Unfortunately, Michigan Bulb has found a way to bombard me with
their latest sweepstakes entry form, despite the fact that I
have never ordered from them.  I guess they bought my name from
another catalog's mailing list.  Michigan Bulb is much complained
about on rec.gardens on Usenet.  I would never order from them.
Interestingly enough, theirs is the only plant catalog I have
ever received that has no phone number anywhere to be found. 
It's snail mail or nothing, for them, which I suppose means 
they really don't *want* you to call and complain when you
receive dead plants from them.

We planted vegetables (tomatoes and peppers, mainly) under lights in the
basement before we went on vacation 4/2. Normally they would have grown enough
to put out in a few weeks. They'll be late this year. I think they took our
absence for two weeks badly.

We plant seeds from Burpee mostly.

for starting from seed, a cookie sheet, some potting medium and
saran wrap for a cover also works well.

Why do you need the saran wrap? To lock the moisture in? Don't they
need to breathe though?

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