Annual Seeds
Seeds are lots of fun if you don't mind a little extra
weeding. My method is to select patches where I don't let any
perennials grow, and then each spring I dig that up, add some peat,
compost and whatever else seems necessary, and work the soil up into
a fine, light texture. I pat the surface down with my palm,
sow the seeds, and then sprinkle fine seed starting mix over them
and water. Because this technique is sure to bring up some
weed seeds (in my garden, oxalis and violets are the most common
trouble makers.) it's necessary to selectively remove them from
amongst the seedlings. I buy almost all of my seeds from Thompson
and Morgan.
Acnistus australis-- 2002. This
plant is obviously a close relative of the daturas. I started
them indoors in late March, because I assume that they need a head
start, like daturas in order to bloom in the first season.
I found them easy to start from seed, and easy to transplant.
It is too early to tell what the final result will be. Final
verdict--start them REALLY early. Ours never got to bloom.
I might not try again, since I prefer the Datura, but these were
easier and faster to germinate than datura.
Adonis aestivalis--Wonderful, brilliant red annual.
Plant seeds in Autumn or very early spring so they have a head start
in spring amidst the other plants. If you plant them later, they
won't get enough light because they are slow to germinate.
The flowers are tiny, but such a brilliant red, they draw attention
to themselves even from a distance. The form is similar to
a larkspur--about 15" tall and airy. We planted
some in 2004 and none came up. The seeds must have been
bad. I have noticed that Thompson and Morgan sometimes lists
them as unavailable due to "Crop
Failure".
Aristolochia littoralis Dutchman's Pipe 2005. The
Aristolochia has what are probably the most bizarre and beautiful
flowers of any plant. (Click
for image and info, side
view of flower, history
and info This Brazilian jungle plant is a moderate challenge to
germinate, and allegedly easy to cultivate. I managed to get them
to sprout, and they're doing well, though I suspect that they won't be
in full form until next year. I will probably swap out the Chilean
Glory Vine for this. This plant is much too striking and unusual not
to have if you like exotic indoor-outdoor plants. HOWEVER,
it is toxic, and I'm going to have to be very careful with the
cats. After starting mine in early March, it looks as if the
ideal time would be more like December or January, provided you have a warm place to
do it. It was about 4 or 5 weeks before the first one
sprouted, and at early June, there are still about 30% of the pots that
are still popping up seedlings. The oldest ones are now about
6" tall. I placed some in the ground already. The roots
were not yet filling the pot I had placed them in, so I was nervous that
the root ball would be damaged, but they still look great two days
later.
Basil Genovese (Organic) Start seeds indoors in
late March, and another batch in May. The difficult part is
getting less than a dozen teensy weensy seeds into each pot, and be sure
that you covered it. Fresh picked basil from the summer garden is
remarkable. The best leaves come before the flowers. You can
delay the decline by removing flower racemes, but the flavor will not be
as good at that point.
Cledanthus arabicus This is a pleasant
plant. Plant after the Equinox and keep watered, just like
grass seed. The seeds are winter hardy, though the plants are
not. They look their best in late June, and then begin to fade
during July along with the annual poppies. They tend to look raggy
and brown by August, so you'll probably want to pull them.
Expect to have some volunteer seedlings from the previous year show up.
click
for image and info
Consolida ambigua aka Delphinium ajacis? (Larkspur) Annual Delphinium
These are best sown directly in the ground in very early spring--as
early as the Equinox in Minnesota. They are winter hardy,
and reseed themselves nicely. Introduce a few packages of
seeds into your garden, and then let them do their own thing.
You'll have them popping up for several years without supplementation.
I reinforce them about every other year with new seeds, and in
undisturbed garden soil, you can expect to have them as weeds, or at
least in need of some thinning. They
make excellent dried and cut flowers, but they sometimes attract aphids.
You'll probably have to use some pyrethrin on them. In the
2002 and 2004 seasons we had very little insect trouble with them. Go
and figure...
Keep in mind that the purchased seeds are pretty expensive, and easy
to overplant. Spread them thinly, because they spread about
6-12" of airy foliage, and get about 12-24" high.
Collect seeds and refrigerate in an airtight container to plant at the
first signs of workable soil in the spring. They are not
susceptible to cold or even late winter frosts. Seedlings often
overwinter here, but for the most part, the seed will sprout in Spring
as soon as the weather gets to around 30 degrees at night, and sunny
days warm the soil. When I plant them around the Equinox, I always am killing
new seedlings in the areas I designate to plant.
Here are my thoughts on the various hybrids we have tried: Earl
Gray--nice, but not
quite as pretty as the picture. None reseeded to perpetuate
themselves. I thought they were a bit too dull in color to keep
anyway. I recommend collecting seed and planting in early
Spring. Frosted Skies--very
pretty. Probably the best looking and performing, but they
weren't numerous and didn't reseed. Collect the seed for planting
in Spring. Kingsize Scarlet--definitely not
as pretty as the picture. More pink and pale than than the
reddish pink the name and picture suggest, but much darker than the
standard pink larkspurs. I collected seed in Fall 2004 that I
planted in Spring 2005. Obviously, it's still too early to know
what colors I have coming up. Sublime Mixed--I recall that
there was a pretty nice balance of blue to the other colors, but only
the blue reseeded on its own. There were none
that were dark pink or reddish, as shown in the picture. At
this point, I have a strong presence of blue larkspurs from the ones I
planted about 5 years ago, and an additional planting of blue
only the following year. In Fall 2004 I collected a mixture of
these blue larkspurs and the Kingsize Scarlet (as many as I could get),
along with Nigella damascena. I mixed them all together and
planted this blend along my boulevard and in patches in the long
bed. These are right now just in the
seedling and germination stages. Chinensis Gentian Blue --
excellent!!! These are the most numerous now, and they are
really a nice,
deep blue, almost indigo.
Cosmos--a large and airy member of the compositae
family: 3-4 feet, occupying about 2-4 square feet. Many different
colors are available and they grow easily from seed. The seeds are
winter hardy in Minnesota. Best grown in low nutrient soil,
or they get too much foliage and too few flowers. They are
wild meadow flowers from Mexico, so don't give them a lot of water.
We don't grow them any more because of the large size, and the fact
that our garden is pretty moist and fertile. You need a lot
of space to have them. They make great veils for an ugly fence,
which is how I often see them planted.
Datura meteloides-- tender perennial. Large and
impressive plant with 8" morning glory-like white flowers that
open at night to release a wonderful fragrance. In warm
climates, these things get as big as small trees. Around here,
the plant gets about 4 feet high and three
feet around. The seeds are easily harvested and kept over the winter
in a plastic bag. They
need a good head start in late February, and they are irregular in their germination,
but not difficult. Some sprout within a couple of weeks.
Others take a couple of months. I recommend a large pot
from the start--like about 1 qt sized--for the seedlings, then pot
them in big pots outdoors, or right in the ground. Plants grow
painfully slowly until summer warmth and sun
boosts them, and they begin flowering 90 days after planting. Plant it in large tubs near places where you are likely
to sit outside at night. This
is a showy relative to the Jimson Weed and is therefore a source
of the powerful and dangerous drug used by Don Juan and Carlos Castaneda
known as "Devil Weed". The seeds are full of belladona
alkaloids like scopalamine. There is significant danger of insanity, liver, kidney and
brain damage, etc. The risk is just to high to justify experimentation,
but it does add to the romance of owning such a diabolical and seductive
plant. I have noticed that it has become a very popular
annual flower here.
Delphinium chinense grandiflorum 'Blue
Butterfly'-- Dwarf Delphinium [Ranunculaceae] A short
lived perennial that needs to be treated as a reseeding annual, it
will produce flowers in the first year. I planted it for the
first time at the 2004 Vernal Equinox, and it started blooming at
the end of August. They are incredible!!! The plants are
short and broadly branched rather than tall and spiky like the showy
delphiniums of the garden centers. The huge, single flowers
are a rich, deep blue. Dead heading encourages more blooms,
but this first year, I lust only for more seeds. More!
More! More! Click
for image at the wonderful Dave's
Garden.
Delphinium nudicale Laurin [Ranunculaceae] New in
2005. No comments yet, other than that the fact that a
bright red delphinium with the form of the D. chinense
grandiflorum sounds absolutely delightful. Stay
tuned.
Eccremocarpus scaber aka Calampelis scaber [click
for info, botanical
info] Glory Vine, Chilean Glory Flower. New experience in
2004. They germinate and grow easily under artificial lights,
but the maturation is slow. I recommend starting them as early
as February indoors. One site said they are difficult to
transplant. My book says they are easy to grow if you start
them in early March. We started them about the time of the
Solstice. They started to bloom rather late--end of
August. It's a cute plant with dainty, pale green
foliage. It's a true vine with tendrils. I brought it in
for the winter (2004-2005) and placed it under artificial lights.
It did fairly well. It had a tendency to dry out fast in its small
ceramic pot--about a 6" pot, I think. It tended to a lot of
leaves that turned brown, but it was always sending out new growth from
the ends of the runners. In late May 2005 I placed it outside in a
sunny location, attaching the pot to a chain link fence and tying the
runners to the fence so that it will cover the fence and give my Thalictrum
rochbrunianum patch some shade. It immediately showed signs of
pretty severe sun shock, and most of the green growth on it
withered. Two weeks later it's exploding with vigorous new growth.
Gazania New in 2002. I started a lot
of them from seed, and bought a plant at the shop. They are extremely
easy to grow from seed. Start them early in Minnesota--like
the end of February.
Helichrysum bracteatum strawflowers.
Exceptionally easy to start from seed! They make outstanding
dried flowers with brilliant color. Pinch them off early in
the season to encourage branching and shorter plants. They
grow 3-4' tall in our garden if you don't pinch them. They
flower well into the frost time, and colorful blooms will dry and
remain all winter. I used to think they don't reseed here in
USDA Zone 4, but they do indeed. We have them every year now
that I know what the seedlings look like.
Ipomoea X multifida Cardinal Climber [Ipomoeacea] [click
for info] This is basically a deep red morning glory with
smaller flowers and finely divided leaves. Other than that, it
grows just like the famous Morning Glory. They can be started
in April indoors. They won't really start growing quickly
until late summer/early fall. I think that they are triggered
by a combination of soil temperature and shortening days. They
do grow vegetatively in Summer, but they will seem slow until right
about the time everything else in your garden has given up for the
year, then BANG! these things explode into rapid growth. They
like acidic soil conditions. A favorite trick of mine is to
put them into beds where plants are that tend to die off or collapse
by September. The Cardinal Climber will cover the area with a
mass of pretty foliage and brilliant red flowers. Since it's
such a tropical plant, there isn't a chance in hell that it will
survive or reseed over the winter, so don't let it's aggressive
growth scare you. Another suggestion is to let it climb
into a raspberry. By the time you get the berries off and the
canes are declining, the beautiful vine will be grateful for the
scaffolding.
Nasturtium: These are extremely easy to grow from
seed, making it possible to avoid the common cultivars at the garden
center. They are edible. The flowers make attractive
garnish and the leaves are nice in salads. Start the seeds
indoors as late as the end of April. Pot them in larger pots
because if you use the typical starter seed trays, they will quickly
tangle together, and you'll never get them apart. What a mess! This
is a great seed plant for a child's first flower seed. I don't
think anything is easier to grow. They are also pretty cold
tolerant so the seeds can be sown in situ even before the
last frost date if you cover them on frosty nights.
Nigella hispanica -- Love-in-a-Mist (annual) [Ranunculaceae].
Easy to grow from seed sown in situ, but said
to be unreceptive to indoor starting and transplanting. I have successfully
managed to transplant plants about 6 weeks old, but after 10 weeks
they were not happy campers when planted and died quickly. If you
grow any plant from seed, this should be it. Unspeakably charming.
They are short-lived, but the seed pods are excellent for dried
flower projects. Expect to rip them out by the beginning of
September, which is about the time you'll want to be sticking some
annual mums in anyway, right?
Nigella damascena ‘Oxford Blue’ (annual)
like the above, but much taller. We planted Persian Jewels
from an off-brand supplier. They were almost exclusively white,
rather than the promised mixed colors, and the flowers were unimpressive.
The seed pods were attractive. Don't get the white ones. These
blue ones are nice. They reseed easily, and when planting,
will often start earlier and denser than other seeds, so you may
need to thin them more heavily.
Papaver assorted annual species -- (annual).
Easy to grow but not tolerant of heat or excessive moisture. Some
have larger seed pods and make great
dried flower pods. They are best planted in the drier areas
of your garden. They will probably decay by the peak of summer
heat, and look shabby by September. Oh well. The show is
worth it. Annual poppies of all kinds are great. I
usually order about 4-5 different ones from Thompson and Morgan, and
just sprinkle them on top of prepared soil at the Vernal Equinox,
and then sprinkle a thin layer of seed starter to cover them, and
water regularly--the same as you would for grass seed. These
are not frost or cold sensitive, and they greatly benefit from an
early start, so plant them as soon as you can work the soil.
Leave some areas undisturbed to encourage reseeding next season, or
gather seeds for planting. They keep well in an airtight
container, and this really saves you money and increases the volume
you can plant. Here are some that I recommend: Papaver
bracteatum (red petals with black highlights), Papaver
commutatum 'flanders'
(scarlet flowers) 'Lady
Bird' (red with large black blotches) 'Meadow
Pastels' (variety of colors, including orange-yellow.) Papaver
rhoeas 'Angel
Choir Mixed'
Ranunculaceae blend Starting this year I am using this method
for planting annual and quasi-perennial seeds in the ranunculaceae
family. Here's how I made the blend for this year: during the
early autumn when it was clear which plants were the prettiest and most
vigorous, I gathered seeds in proportions that seemed to correspond to
my enthusiasm for each. The blend included: Delphinium chinense grandiflorum
'Blue Butterfly', Delphinium chinensis Gentian Blue, Larkspur
'Kingsize Scarlet', blue Aquilegia caerulea, and Nigella
hispanica. I planted this mix in carefully prepared, loose,
fertile soil, then covered it with about 1/8" to 1/4" of seed
starting soil (mostly vermiculite). We had a rainy spring so I
didn't have to water much. It's really important to water them
frequently until they get their roots down 4" or so (just like
growing grass seed). Once they all sprout, I withhold the frequent
surface watering to minimize subsequent weed germination.
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