Everyone knows spider plants are super easy to grow. You hear tales of them volunteering even if not planted or becoming invasive when they are. I was enthralled by them on a visit my great aunt's when I was just a kid. She gave me seed, they didn't grow. Now, 40 years later, I still can't get them to even come up! No one in my immediate area grows them as far as I can tell. My only theory as to the cause is that it must somehow be related to pH levels. Is cleome an acid loving plant? I have neutral to base soil and long ago gave up on blueberries and other plants that need acidic soil.

Maybe the volunteers get a little stratification? Did you try planting them in the fall or winter?
I don't grow them but the reseed around our community garden.

I've been sowing in spring. Have I gotten bad information on sowing times?

I only suggested that because they do self seed at the garden and my friend used to have a yardful from self sown seeds and of course, they go through the winter outside. They were beautiful.

Searching cleome germination, I get this
http://higgledygarden.com/2013...
She suggests a week of cold stratification in the fridge, fluctuating temps and light for germination.

Swallowtail says this:
"Plant Cleome Seeds: Sow cleome seed in cell packs or flats press into soil and barely cover. Keep at 75-80°F. during the day, and 10°F. cooler at night. Germination is in 10-21 days. The Queen series cleomes are best sown where they are to grow after all danger of frost ¼ in. deep and 3 in. apart. Thin to 18-24 in. apart.

Grow Cleome: The Sparkler series of cleomes are primed for easy germination and should not be chilled prior to sowing. The Queen series cleomes will germinate at higher rates if the seed is chilled. Spread seed out evenly on a moist paper towel, fold and put inside a zip-lock bag. Place bag in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. Remove seeds and immediately sow into prepared seed beds. For both series high daytime temperatures followed by cooler nighttime temperatures is extremely beneficial. When seed is sown outdoors temperature swings will occur naturally. Indoors, using a heating pad during the day, and turning the pad off at night is highly effective."

So apparently the cold period is short enough that you could plant in the spring.

Thanks. I may plant my next attempt a little earlier. I didn't keep track of temperature at planting time but I think it was slightly above 70 at night then. We start getting warm nights early here thanks to our humidity.

Hi UncleWill,

I love cleomes and years ago I first started them in my garden (back in the North East) with the winter sowing method but I could've just sown the seeds directly into de soil without stratification when the weather was warm during the day but cool at night. They are native to South America where they have a long flowering season (and the winters there are rather mild).

Now that I live in a state where watering a garden can get very expensive, I plan to sow cleomes directly into the soil next week (temps at night in the 50s and during the day in the 70s - 80s) because cleomes are drought tolerant and perennial in zone 10.

Do try again next year, you'll succeed.

Thanks for the encouragement!

I think they prefer acid soil adjust the PH sounds like a way to go and of course all the advice above... in my zone they self seed and there is a cold snowy season wet acid rain spring and drought in summer July thru oct. they are the perfect self care plant in my whole garden and deer don't eat them nor gophers. Plus zero pests! Who could ask for anything more.?

You always have beautiful beautiful pics of your garden... love you pics and advice.

They do an unsurpassed job of self-seeding:

Thanks for the compliment bumblbea, and the information on acidity.
Looks like I'm going to to have to double down on my acidification efforts if I expect success. I started adding a soil acidifier this year but not enough to have had a noticeable effect on my Ph levels.

UncleWill I have the reverse issue my soil is too acidic every year lime is added to adjust the ph level. soil test in a few weeks should help you gage the acid levels. Around 6.0 is good.

Pirl.....Oh my goodness great pic...the seedling fairies have been busy in your garden! Send me some! there's enough there to set up 1 of my pastures horses love em too! Hehe....there quit a delicacy...

The many colors when these little seedlings pop up are a splendid surprise.

Now I'm missing spring already!

We have it coming up in granite gravel surprisingly considered acidic. I wouldn't have guessed.

CLeome seeds need oscillation of temperature to break dormancy.
THis is especially so for the old cultivars and the wildflower ones.

@CarolineScott: Thanks for the information! Didn't know that.

I noticed, that Cleome could even sprout, between sections of concrete! I think the issue may be partly due, to if they are from your own plants, versus from a seed packet. But, with it considered being a 'warm season' annual, may cause one to delay sowing & found out long ago, it did better,, if sown much earlier than one might imagine. As suggested above, it seems to expect a cool moist period, followed by a warming trend before it wants to germinate. A short stratification & when the temperature is just right, they all of a sudden appear to be sprouting at about the same time. When that is happening, they do need to be kept moist, at the very least until the pair of seed leaves have developed.

@shawnsteve Any seeds I would have would be from a packet. If I direct sow how long before last frost would you suggest I sow?

I would suggest approximately, about two weeks before the beginning of spring. My zone is different, but I don't know how close you are located to the Atlantic Ocean, which helps moderates the temperature here. I used water from the hose, that had been warmed by the sun, which already had some water in it, prior to turning on the spigot..Then quickly directed at that area where sown, once germination was first observed starting..(They germinate a bit slowly.)

bumplbea said:I think they prefer acid soil adjust the PH sounds like a way to go and of course all the advice above... in my zone they self seed and there is a cold snowy season wet acid rain spring and drought in summer July thru oct. they are the perfect self care plant in my whole garden and deer don't eat them nor gophers. Plus zero pests! Who could ask for anything more.?

You always have beautiful beautiful pics of your garden... love you pics and advice.

Deer don't eat them? !! Good god, I'll be trying them in the front yard. Deer eat everything here. I have seed that I just ordered this year. :hurray:

@UncleWill

My mom had some pass along seed that was given to her. We both used to grow them in San Antonio, years ago. Basically just threw them down and watered. They grew like crazy. The soil was that red clay junk that builders call "sandy loam" - over caliche. I've never thought of that stuff as low ph, but maybe.... plumbago and morning glories grew like gangbusters there... just as a side note.

I sowed them in springtime, already warm but probably a 15 to 20 degree difference between day and night temps.

I just received my second order of Cleome seeds from a different company than the first ones. These are all queens and the packets say to sow on moist medium and put in frig for 2 weeks. I'm not keen on putting dirt in my frig so I'm going to try the paper towel method mentioned above. And, I have a bucket of new rainwater... debating whether to use that for sprouting. I don't want to grow mosquitos in my frig either.

Are you putting any out this year, @UncleWill? Or anyone else?

The first round I put out may have sprouted.... I direct sowed, maybe a month ago?, and I can't tell if they are weeds or not. We've had dramatic fluctuations in temps, so

I haven't gotten any yet Baker. The local big boxes haven't put up their seed displays yet. I don't know what they're waiting for.

I'm terribly behind on my sowing, can't get the weather to cooperate when I have time off. Intend to sow the first round of annuals tomorrow. If I have to chill the cleome they're going to get a late start.