Greenhouse Seedlings 11/26/2011

Remember, a left click on an image will give you an enlargement.

It has been 20 days since I last took picture of the seedlings growing in the greenhouse. Watching them daily, it soesn't seem like they are growing much but then when I compare these images with those of 20 days ago, it appears that they have made good progress. Compare these with the previous images, then back to the first images and you will see what I mean.

These are the seedling to the right of the entrance door. The seeds were planted on July 23 and transplanted to the gallon pots on September 24, so they are now about 4 months old.

These are the seedlings left of the entrance door.

These are the left center bench looking from the rear of the greenhouse. They were started in peat pots about two week later than the first bunch and were the last to be transplanted to gallon pots on October 18, almost a moth later than the ones first planted.









The seedlings on the right bench appear larger because they were transplanted about a month earlier that the last bunch, plus, that is the side of the greenhouse that the gas heater is on. I am thinking that this is making a world of difference.

As always, we thank you for visiting our blog. Please leave a comment below.

Life is very, very good.

Lee

Greenhouse Seedlings 11/7/2011

Remember, a left click on an image will give you an enlargement.

I thought I would show the growth of the seedlings in just 2 ½ weeks. They have been watered overhead daily with my misting system with a weak solution of water soluble fertilizer. You can check each picture with the pictures in the previous blog to see the growth. I tried to take the pictures in about the same location.

This is the seedling bench on the right side of the greenhouse.

The seedling bench on the left side of the greenhouse.

And this is the left center bench looking from the door.















As you can see, there has been considerable growth in just 2 ½ weeks. Hopefully, many will bloom in March/April/May.

As always, we thank you for visiting our blog. Please leave a comment below.

Life is very, very good.

Lee

Greenhouse Seedlings 10/21/2011

Remember, a left click on an image will give you an enlargement.

I finished transplanting the peat pot seedlings in the greenhouse a couple days ago, but had to wait until today to take the pictures because of lack of sunlight. When the cold front came through a couple days ago, not only did our temperatures take a nosedive and we received about 1" of rain, but the sun ducked under clouds. Today I was able to take some pictures. 

Seeds were planted in peat pots in July/August. Transplanting of the seedling peat pots to trade 1 gallon pots began on September 24, and because of my being slow and doctor''s appointments, etc., I did not finish until October 19.

As you walk in the door of the greenhouse, this bench is to the right. It is comprised of 4 4' x 10' benches for a total of 40'. Each 10' bench is also a water bed which is made from 2 x 4s and lined with plastic. There are 18 rows of 7 pots in each of the 4 beds for a total of 504 trade 1 gallon pots on each 44' bench. As the seedlings are transplanted, a small handful of Nutricote 18-6-8 180 day with minors was added to the pots. In addition, 2 tsp. of Bayer Tree and Shrub were sprinkled on the top to prevent fungus gnats, aphids, thrips, etc.  A weed pre-emergent was also sprinkled on the top. Yes, we do get weeds in the greenhouse.

As you walk in the door of the greenhouse, this bench is on the left side. As you can see, it is of the same configuration and size as the bench on the right side. Again, there are 18 rows of 7 pots in each of the 4 beds for a total of 504 trade 1 gallon pots on each 40' bench. This brings the total pots at this point to 1008.







This picture is taken from the back of the greenhouse looking toward the entrance door. There is one more 4' x 10' bench with 126 seedlings on it. As you walk in the dorr of the greenhouse, it is the bench on the left center. This bench is 30' long. I have used 10' and the remaining 20' will be for Jean to start her annuals and the neighbor to start his tomato and pepper plants.





There are 4 benches wide in my greenhouse, and the 4th bench will be used for my hybridizing plants. It is about 36' long and I can get 156 potted 3 gallon pots on it. If you look to the left side of the last image above, you will be able to see this bench.

All benches are set up also as water beds. Last year I grew all of the daylilies, both hybridizing plants and seedlings in the water beds. I would guess that I bloomed 40% of the 9 month seedlings.

So, if you have been counting, there are a total of 1134 seedlings growing in trade one gallon pots. These are all of the seedlings we will grow this year. It has just gotten too difficult for us to get down on our knees and plant seedlings in the ground. In the past, we have grown up to 5000 seedlings . . . no more! Again, if you are counting, this is approximately 80% fewer seedlings than just a couple years ago.

As always, we thank you for visiting our blog. Please leave a comment below.

Life is very, very good.

Lee

Power Point seedling presentation

Each year I develop a Power Point presentation of some of the selected seedlings of that and other years that I am watching and hoping they will "weather the storm" of selection. This year is no different. The 2011 version is done. If they have a "1" in front of the seedling number, they first bloomed in 2011. You will also see images of the parents of these seedlings. 

One of the year 2011 seedlings on the Power Point presentation






I have spent some time trying to figure out how to get you to the Power Point presentation by clicking something on this blog . . . without success. I am not the most computer literate person as you can probably tell. So, I guess the best way to get you to it is to tell you to go to my website at www.chattanoogadaylilies.com and on the "home" page you will find a yellow box in the upper right hand corner . . . left click on "Seedlings" and you should be able to open the presentation. You will need to have the Power Point software on your computer to be able to view it.

One of the year 2010 seedlings on the Power Point presentation.






For the last several days I have been transplanting the peat pot seedlings in the greenhouse to trade gallon pots. At this point, I have 900 plus done. I plan to end up with about 1100. When I am finished, I will post pictures on this blog.

As always, we thank you for visiting our blog. Please leave a comment below.

Life is very, very good.

Lee

 

2012 Introductions . . . Final Part 9

The weather has moderated some here and it is more like the beginning of fall with a few warmer days thrown in. I have started transplanting the seedling peat pots into the 1 gallon pots. I can oly work until about 10:30 in the greenhouse because then the sun is out and the temperature has climbed.

2012 Introduction No. 8 Final (Left click for a larger image) 

All images I have shown you so far have been taken outside in the field. For Introduction No. 9, I thought I would show you images from both the greenhouse and the field. The pattern is exactly the same, the "relief" sculpting is still evident, the biggest difference is in the color. Yes, in the second image, the flower does have sepals, they are just recurved.

From the greenhouse . . .

From the field . . .

H. 'When Johnny Comes Marching Home’

s/f ... $100.00 ... d/f ... $150.00
28” EM SEv Re EMO Ext 5½”. 4-way branching, 18 buds. Petals 3½”, sepals 2”.
    This flower has the “relief” form of sculpting and is a pale peach with a rosy eye. A lemon-lime throat and a heavily ruffled rosy edge with a gold line provides the finishing touches. Opens like this every morning. Very heavy substance which holds well in the sun or rain. Second set of scapes emerge before first set is done blooming. Fertile. No. 9034 (Elisa Dallas X Wonder Of It All)

As always, we thank you for visiting our blog. Please leave a comment below.

Life is very, very good.

Lee

2012 Introductions . . . Part 8

I had donated about 600 1 gallon potted daylily seedlings to the City of Chattanooga Parks Department and yesterday City employees arrived with a big truck. It took three trips to get them all. I will get a nice tax donation letter from the City . . . much better than composting them. The seedlings were still in the greenhouse so now that they were removed, this morning I spent time cleaning up getting ready to transplant the peat pot seedlings to one gallon pots. It is always fun transplanting and trying to imagine what I will get from each of the crosses. A good time!

2012 Introduction No. 8 (Left click for a larger image) 

H. 'Steppin’  Out With My Baby’

s/f ... $85.00 ... d/f ... $125.0035" ML SEv EMO Ext LFr Re 6". 5-way branching, 27 buds. Petals 3”, sepals 2”.
    This has been one of my perennial (am I allowed to say that) favorites in the garden. A complex overlay of strawberry syrup mixed with lemonade shows up in the color.  A bright lemon throat leads to a green heart. It has a delicate appearance, but the substance is as heavy as leather and defies the sun and rain to touch it. Opens like pictured every morning. Very round and full, the petals are heavily ruffled with some light relief sculpting in evidence. The tall scapes carry the heavily branched and budded scape. A very fine daylily. Pod and pollen fertile. No. 8153 (Judy Farquar X Wonder Of It All)

As always, we thank you for visiting our blog. Please leave a comment below.

Life is very, very good.

 

Lee

2012 Introductions . . . Part 7

What a great weekend! I flew to Hartford, Connecticut on Friday to speak to the Connecticut Daylily Society on Saturday. Friday night I was picked up at the hotel and taken to dinner by club president Russ Allen. We were joined by Phil Douville and Cheryl Fox. Nice conversation and they tried to get me to talk about daylilies but I told them to wait until Saturday so they wouldn't have to hear the same thing twice.

Saturday morning, Gary Jones picked me up at the hotel and took me on a driving tour of Hartford, including the Mark Twain house where he used to work. It would have been nice to take the inside tour, but I just cannot walk steps. I saw a lot of the insurance company buildings that my son consults with.

Saturday, after the meeting, Rich Howard took me to his home to see his operation. Rich also has a greenhouse and although we have never corresponded about our operations, we do a lot of things very similar. Rich uses the No. 38 seed trays, and like me, has a lot of the resulting seedlings are still to be planted.


Rich presented me with a cap, but not just any cap, a "Life is good" cap. Rich asked me, "Please be diligent in wearing  this cap to help keep anything else from leaking out". What a friend! Here I am tilling under the 3500 seedlings in the field that were non selects. I till them in to help put nutrients back in the soil. You can see me wearing Rich's cap. Then, a close up to show the logo. When I went inside, I looked in the cap and saw that nothing new had leaked out. Just left click for a larger image.





2012 Introduction No. 7 (Left click for a larger image)

H. 'Orange Blossom Lane’

s/f ... $85.00 ... d/f ... $125.00
35" E SEv Re EMO Ext 6". 3-way branching, 18 buds. Petals 3”, sepals 2”.
    Opens with perfect form every time. The large 6" flower is a soft orange marmalade self but it does have a very faint rose halo. The flower is finished by with very green throat. The heavy substance makes the flower rain and sun resistant. The wide petals are lightly folded and ruffled which also carries through on the sepals. Fertile both ways in the greenhouse. No.0710 (Enchanted Dreams X tetra Connie Burton)

As always, we thank you for visiting our blog. Please leave a comment below.

Life is very, very good.

Lee