“Patience is the art of hoping.” – Luc de Clapiers, Marquis de Vauvenargues
This is my mindset every year as I embark on my new Winter Sowing adventure. In 2024-2025 I planted seeds for 26 different species and ended up with 150 plants. This year, I planted 37 species and I think I’ll end up with more than 270. I’m addicted! It is so incredibly fun and rewarding to see these beautiful, ecologically valuable plants literally come to life.
Now, I will be completely honest here: not everything has worked out. In fact, this year, I had more failures than last. I had seeds that germinated then died. I had seeds that did not germinate at all. But it is all an experiment. I am a scientist! And I get to learn – some containers were too wet—maybe I didn’t drill enough drainage holes—and some were too dry—the potting soil wasn’t quite right, etc. I am making lots of notes for next winter.
I say this so that you know that, if you have tried and haven’t had a lot of success, it happens. Do not give up. Make adjustments and try again.
So, here are some of my wins. Below are four of my babies: common blue violet (Viola sororia), the gift that keeps on giving (I used seeds I collected last year when this plant self-pollinated); sweet goldenrod (Solidago odora), a plant whose leaves smell like anise when rubbed; wild strawberry (Fragaria virginiana), an aggressive native with which I am planning to replace a lot of my lawn; and golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea), something I wanted to grow ‘just because’ since I don’t have the right growing conditions for them and will end up selling them later this year.
Second-year Plants
These are plants I winter-sowed last year, so they are in their second year—when I will (hopefully) see them bloom for the first time: butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa), whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata), and common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca). The common milkweed is in two large planter pots because it is a really aggressive native plant. I really wanted it, so now I am treating it like a hot potato – I move the planters here. I move the planters there. I am not sure where to put it since I can see that rhizomes are going right through the bottom, and I can’t let it run amok! Obviously, this means I need a bigger yard.
Below is wild sundial lupine (Lupinus perennis). This one is both hard and not hard to grow. Germination is easy—7 to 10 days in the refrigerator after scarification, and they’re good to go. The tricky part is handling the roots when transplanting. I did it last year, and obviously I was careful enough, but this year I am trying Cowpots, so I do not have to disturb the roots at all and can just put the pot in the ground when they are ready. I took these pictures over the past few days. I think these are the blooms I have been waiting for for two years!
Next is wild columbine (Aquilegia canadensis), a profuse self-seeder and an evolutionary partner of our one bird pollinator on the Cape: the ruby-throated hummingbird. The tubular petals are a dead giveaway that this plant is pollinated by hummingbirds and insects with long tongues—the only way to get that sweet nectar reward. This makes for a great groundcover, especially under trees (that’s where mine are), and provides a great pop of color in early spring, just in time for those early-arriving hummingbirds.
Last but not least: common blue violet (Viola sororia). This cute little native is, like its friend above, a profuse self-seeder, but on steroids! This plant is so serious about reproducing that, like I mentioned earlier, it can self-pollinate. It is cleistogamous (meaning it produces specialized, closed flowers that self-pollinate without opening, usually in summer after the showy spring blooms). Here’s the thing, though. I grew these last year from seed, and like many native perennials, they did not bloom. There were no “showy spring blooms.” However, in the summer, I started seeing these cute little pods and realized they were seed pods! So, I collected a few and left the rest to fall wherever they wanted. This year, I have lots of babies all around the mother plants as well as in my winter-sowing trays. And finally, a few weeks ago, I got my first actual blooms. Boy, were they worth the wait!
I hope this inspires you to try winter-sowing and/or just growing native plants from seed anytime – you can still do it right now! And just so you know, I was not a gardener until two years ago and I am no expert. Yes, I read (a lot!), listen to podcasts, and attend workshops and webinars, but I am still new and I have grown so many plants already – plants that are healthy, happy, and providing so much value to my small and humble habitat. If you are at all interested in making your yard even the littlest bit more wildlife – and environmentally friendly, I cannot recommend growing native plants from seed enough.
Cheers!
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