In late winter, I tucked butterfly weed (asclepias tuberosa), stiff goldenrod (solidago rigida/oligoneuron rigidum), and sky blue aster (symphyotrichum oolentangiense) seeds into damp paper towels, then sealed them in labelled plastic bags.
Each day for several weeks, I moved the bags between freezer and fridge, hoping to mimic the freeze and thaw of late winter edging toward spring. At the end of the sometimes forgetful process — miss a day here, miss a day there — I tucked them into seed trays filled with starter mix and vermiculite, set them beneath grow lights in a warm room, and waited.
But as the days passed and the robins returned, I could tell something wasn’t right.
Mold on the seeds. Fuzz on the soil. There was more loss than life.
Maybe the fridge was too warm.
Maybe the freezer was too cold.
Maybe the starter was too wet.
Maybe the seeds were old,
or damaged before they ever began.
Perhaps the air was too still.
I’ll be lucky if I get a single seedling.
All I know is that, at this point, there are too many variables to sort through, with no clear way of knowing for certain.
I’ll accept the losses. The rest is insight.
Next year, I’ll diversify the risk: half outside, half indoors, as I’ve done before.
It’s not entirely hopeless. I’ll keep watching the trays, scraping away the fuzz and mold. Switching on the grow lights in the morning. Making sure the air keeps moving. Seeds are resilient, and sometimes they surprise you still.
