Mumless for Fall
 

What can I grow from seed in my greenhouse to sell as container plants in the fall?

I'm going to order more sunflowers and keep growing them as long as weather allows. I'm looking at ornamental kale, possibly ornamental grasses. I have a lot of big 9" mum pots left over. I used them for container gardens of greens in the early spring. I can do the same thing in the fall, but the weather is still too hot for lettuce in a pot. I've combined tall celosia and short zinnias to make a few combo planters that look nice, trying to build off the ideas in flower arranging, focal point, filler, and breaking the outline with something tall. I'm not sure what I would put in them as fall flowers.

Right now I have a lot of fall color rudbeckia and some calendula coming up as sprouts. They might work in pots. I also ordered the orange ornamental pepper "hot pops" and have those sprouting right now, too, and I have a flat of another purple mini ornamental peppers, Chile Conga, as well.

You sent me some ornamental peppers that you growing on your porch, a few years back. One was not very big, and had small black peppers. maybe center one of those in a pot with little marigolds for fall/ Halloween colors?

And it's a house plant in my climate, not a fall decoration, but I am also consider ordering an assortment of wandering jew cuttings and making combo planters that I could overwinter or sell at my winter market.

Ideally, they would look something like this:
[IMG]https://ncfarmsinc.com/products_images/wandering-jew-rhapsody-combo.jpg[/IMG]

[QUOTE=imp;709384]You sent me some ornamental peppers that you growing on your porch, a few years back. One was not very big, and had small black peppers. maybe center one of those in a pot with little marigolds for fall/ Halloween colors?[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that's Chile Conga. I like that variety. That's a good idea to combine it with marigolds. I didn't think of that. Thanks, Imp.

You're welcome. You were kind enough to share seed, hopefully sharing an idea will help you a bit.

Quick-growing flowers:
1. Sweet Alyssum
2. Calendula
3. Johnny Jump-ups
4. Cornflowers
5. Nigella
6. Nasturtiums
7. Annual Phlox
8. Petunias
9. California Poppies
10. Sunflowers

I'm thinking of the potted plants my supermarket sold in the winter and early spring. Cinerarias and obconica primulas. The primulas surprised me - they aren't normally sold because some people get a rash from touching them.

Cinerarias come in lots of colours, but I prefer the bright blue ones. Sow in June to flower in January, mid-July for February, September 1 for March, October 1 for April.

I love pansies and ornamental kale
KarenO

[QUOTE=Cole_Robbie;709385]And it's a house plant in my climate, not a fall decoration, but I am also consider ordering an assortment of wandering jew cuttings and making combo planters that I could overwinter or sell at my winter market.

Ideally, they would look something like this:
[IMG]https://ncfarmsinc.com/products_images/wandering-jew-rhapsody-combo.jpg[/IMG][/QUOTE]

Yes.
Tropicals sell well in the fall when people are starting to go inside as the weather cools.

I did end up getting pot mums, as I posted in the other thread. For my alternative fall flowers, rudbeckia seems to have done the best. Calendula did not want to grow for me, nor did the hot pops ornamental peppers I tried. The plastic containers get very hot in the sun, which was probably the issue.

But I do have a few nice rudbeckia:

I've been seeing those for sale here lately, too along with
gaillardia. Both are nice to buy as they are perennials. Good to have something to choose from besides mums.

Rudbeckias are the carefree fall flowers!! My mom has had plain yellow ones forever, and just this year she bought one that turned out to be a stunning dark red color. Those are a nice color you have, too. :)



Cole, don't forget to plant yourself a patch.. next year you just have to divide them and not bother with growing from seed. Perennials rock... so easy.8-)

Those are beautiful CR. My black eyed susan plant is the plain yellow type without the pretty dark throat, and they are long finished blooming anyway. I haven't found a pretty cultivar that is perennial here. I agree it is very trendy this year in fall planters.

- Lisa

Some of those Rudbeckias are annuals. Several times, I have bought the gorgeous ones with mahogany centers, and wondered why they never returned in spring :(.

My old faithful variety is Rudbeckia Fulgida which absolutely thrives, and increases with abandon :).

Linda

I wonder if Thunbergia alata would do well in your area -- black-eyed susan vine. It's eye-catching, especially if no one else is growing it. I've seen the deep orange ones grown as perennial vines here, but in cold-winter areas it'd probably be grown as an annual and might work in hanging baskets. When I looked it up just now, I found it comes in lots of colors. Supposed to be easy from seed; haven't grown it myself.

[QUOTE=habitat_gardener;715268]I wonder if Thunbergia alata would do well in your area -- black-eyed susan vine. It's eye-catching, especially if no one else is growing it. I've seen the deep orange ones grown as perennial vines here, but in cold-winter areas it'd probably be grown as an annual and might work in hanging baskets. When I looked it up just now, I found it comes in lots of colors. Supposed to be easy from seed; haven't grown it myself.[/QUOTE]

It grows extremely easy from seed and very quickly. Mine covered a whole wall in my garden, 6 ft and still grew so I had to hack it back. In fact I got so tired of it that I got rid of it but I do miss it now, esp since no one else is growing it around here, and it was pretty. I just never liked orange flowers LOL.I've seen them in white and cream also.

So, Cole, how are your mums coming now?

They are mostly ok, but for some reason are taking longer to bloom than last year. I still dont have blooms, thus nothing to sell yet.

Maybe something to boost the urge to get with the budding and blooming?


If not all sold out, maybe over winter some and then have plants to divide and have early for the next season?

As I said in your other thread I do flower ordering for work and the rudbeckia this year sold like gangbusters.

Have you considered purple millet or Japonica/ornamental corn? That's popular here too.

Mrs Mars is a red sunflower I grew in pots last year and it makes a nice contrast to the usual yellows.

Bowls of pansiolas and a striped sedge as the thriller in the center did very well in spring and fall. For spring we had yellow/purple and for fall we had giant pansies with the same striped sedge or bunny tails grass. Next year I will look for purple and orange and black for Halloween pansies/violas.

We also sold lots of Pow Wow Wild Berry and Cheyenne Spirit Echinacea and tall/medium sedums (Autumn Joy, Matrona, and some red ones). We also sold loads of Asters. Mostly Henrii pink and purple.

I really pushed the perennial and good for pollinators/monarch butterflies angles for advertising.