When to start marigolds, yarrow, gooseberries, & sunflow

[PunkRotten]

Hi,


I have seeds for all these plants and want to add them to my garden. I am in zone 9/10. Would starting them now be a good idea?? Also, do sunflowers have really aggressive and strong roots? I have a spot about near a generator. I would plant it about a foot away from it. Just worried that the roots would spread and damage something.


Thx

[silentrunning]

I planted my Marigold seeds tonight here in south Florida.The ones I had planted last spring had pretty well fizzeled.

[soil]

marigolds start in spring, or if you have enough seed, just lightly till them into the soil where you want them to grow come spring. they will do the rest.

same goes for yarrow, since your in a warm zone you can probably start them anytime though.

gooseberries need cold to germinate. stratify seeds in the fridge if it doesnt get cold enough. not sure what that temp is but I bet its at least below 40, probably under 35.

sunflowers plant whenever if you have no danger of frost.

[PunkRotten]

So I should not plant marigolds now right? I tried a few gooseberries already and got a few sprouts but they got burned cause I was stupid and left them in the sun too long. BTW these are cape gooseberries. Only reason I decided on the Sunflowers is cause this area gets sun blocked partially. So since the Sunflower gets tall it will be able to get sun, but anything low growing would struggle.


I am not even really interested in getting seeds to eat, I want it mostly just for looks and to attract pollinators maybe. Do you know if yarrow is a slow grower?

[PunkRotten]

I planted my Marigold seeds tonight here in south Florida.The ones I had planted last spring had pretty well fizzeled.

What zone are you? Also could you tell me your lowest temps and your highest temps through the year? For me in the summer temps are in the 90s and some days low 100s. Coolest temps are in the lower 40s. Some rare instances we get a few days in the upper 30s but not all the time. It is mostly low to mid 40s all winter. Thx

[!potatoes!]

for clarity's sake, you're talking about the 'giant cape gooseberries' you were referring to earlier, and not regular 'real' gooseberries, right? one of the reasons that name annoys me - 'giant cape gooseberries' are not gooseberries at all, not similar at all, either. also known as goldenberries, wonderberries (Physalis peruviana)... real gooseberries are (usually) spiny shrubs (Ribes spp), and need very different care from anything in the physalis genus. - which is why soil is telling you to cold-stratify your seed - something not necessary for the 'giant capes'.

I realize I'm not actually giving you any planting info, just trying to clarify so someone can give you the right info. I

[PunkRotten]

Yeah that is all correct. These are the Physalis peruviana. I have a few sprouts now and will see what happens. I will see if they overwinter if not I will try again in Spring. I have some Marigolds growing now that I planted about a month ago. They are doing pretty good, will see how they turn out too.