I find that by putting fine seed like digitalis or petunia in a glass jar and mix in some sharp sand with it then I would have better control of seed distribution when I apply the mix to a flat.

John Roberto

I needed an annual to occupy some bare spots in my shade garden while my new hostas were growing in pots, to be planted out in the fall.  I had some leftover nicotiana seed, `sensation`, so I sowed them, knowing it was probably too shaded for them to do very well. I kept them well watered, cut off the flower spikes as they very weakly appeared, and boy, did the leaves grow very large and tropical looking!  I'm going to try it again this year just to see if it was a fluke!

Sharon Spitler

Portulacas can be used to tell if part of your yard is full sun or not.  Place a pot of portulacas in the yard on a sunny day.  If the area is full sun, the flowers will open.  If it isn't full sun, the flowers will remain closed.  If it is part sun, the flowers will close during the shady part of the day.  They will only open in full sun.

Lisa Logue

Sometimes Impatiens can be hard to grow.  Here is a tip on germinating them.  Sow the impatiens seeds. Put the seeds in darkness for two days.  Then put them under growlights and all the seeds should sprout at the same time.

Lisa Logue

Under my maple and hemlock trees, I have shady areas that could use some color.  It is hard to grow colorful, shade-tolerant plants and flowers there because of the shallow tree roots taking up nearly all the available moisture and nutrients from the soil. I have to put various containers planted with impatiens, coleus and hypostes under the trees and conceal them with mulch.  I've found the plants grow much better when they don't have to compete with tree roots.

Andrea Laford