Last month, for the first time, I posted a comprehensive update of all The Cut Flower Patch seeds sown this year, as I've had lots of positive feedback with growers telling me it's a useful tool, we're going to make this a regular monthly feature. I find it interesting to see the growth rates of the plants and in some cases what a difference a month can make, especially at this time of year when everything is enjoying the warm, light days. As before the information is grouped by month and for each plant I've specified the number of weeks since sowing. I've also included the photo from last month and then the current photo which was taken on the day of writing this blog post.
The January Seed Box - Sweet Pea, Godetia, Gypsophila, Delphinium and Cleome
Sweet pea - week 19
week 19 week 19 week 15
As you can see the sweet peas have shot up in the last 4 weeks. A couple of weeks ago they were looking a bit pale so I fed them with a little diluted tomato feed which I think they must have enjoyed! I've also tied some twine horizontally round the bamboo canes to create some additional structure to the growing frame.
Godetia - week 19
week 19 ` week 15
Around 4 weeks ago I planted out the godetia into my cut flower patch, it's had a growth spurt too. I've been regularly watering my cut flower patch as it's in a sunny spot and gets dry very quickly. I think the godetia will be in full flower within a week or two.
Gypsophila - week 19
week 19 week 15
I planted out my gypsophila 2 weeks ago and I think I've neglected it a little. It was looking fairly robust at week 15 but now it's looking a bit leggy so am going to cut it back a little to see if that will encourage bushier growth.
Delphinium - week 18
week 18 week 14
I've had a few slug related issued with the delphiniums, I've managed to save 2 or 3 and am going to plant them out in a container to try and keep the slugs at bay.
Cleome - week 18
Despite 2 sowings of cleome I failed to get any seeds to germinate, I do hope you've had more success than me.
The February Seed Box - Dahlia, Ageratum, Aster, Achillea and Rudbeckia
Dahlia - week 15
week 15 week 11
Slugs love dahlias so I had planned to wait a while before planting them out in my cut flower patch, the more robust the plant the less likely they are to get eaten. However as so many of my seeds successfully germinated I've planted out a few into my patch on the basis I have back ups and can afford to lose the odd one or two. When the dahlias get 4 sets of leaves I'll pinch them out
Ageratum - week 15
week 15 week 11
It's good to see my ageratum has finally got going. I'll harden them off for a week or two and then plant them out. I hear from other Cut Flower Patch growers that their ageratum is thriving, I love to hear how others are doing and find it fascinating how different the results can be even though we're all sowing the same seeds at roughly the same time.
Aster - week 15
week 15 week 15 week 11
I planted out my asters a couple of weeks ago, I still have a few in 9cm pots and it's interesting to see the difference between the ones that are in my cut flower patch and the ones still in a pot, the ones in the patch are looking much healthier. There comes a point when the plants need more space and more nutrients than a small pot can provide. I frequently make the mistake of leaving my plants in their pots for too long and then they become pot bound and their growth is restricted.
Achillea - week 15
week 15 week 11
Although the achillea is still quite small (usually I'd wait for the plant to be about fist size before planting out) I've popped them in my patch because they haven't grown much in the last month and I am hoping it might benefit from the additional space and ventilation.
Rudbeckia - week 15
week 15 week 15 week 11
Similarly to the achillea, my rudbeckia plants are still quite small but I feel they will benefit from increased space and ventilation so have planted them out into my cut flower patch. Fingers crossed.
The March Seed Box - Sunflower, Zinnia, Cosmos, Cornflower and Greater Quaking Grass
Sunflower - week 11
week 11 week 7
It's so tempting to plant out my sunflowers but from bitter experience I know it's worth waiting a little longer as they're another plant that the slugs will happily munch on all day long. As soon as they are around 30cm high I'll pinch out the growing tip and I will stake them if they need a bit of extra support,
Zinnia - week 11
week 11 week 7
Am really pleased with my zinnia, I have had a few problems with them in the past because they don't like root disturbance but this sowing is looking good. I will plant these into a container in a week or twos time.
Cosmos - week 11
week 11 week 7
I started pinching out the cosmos when it had 3 sets of leaves, it's seems to have paid off as the plants are looking robust and I planted them out into my cut flower patch 2 weeks ago.
Cornflower - week 11
week 11 week 7 winter sown
The cornflower plants are growing really quickly, I've planted them out into my patch. I also wanted to share with you a photo of the cornflower I sowed in the winter which is now in flower...a taste of things to come.
Greater Quaking Grass (Briza maxima) - week 11
week 11 week 7
Another one that's romping away, I planted out the briza maxima a couple of weeks ago and it's clearly thriving outside in my patch.
The April Seed Box - Amaranthus, Scabiosa, Campanula, Ranunculus and Anemone
Amaranthus - week 7
week 7 week 3
My amaranthus doesn't seem to have made much progress in the last 4 weeks, I've thinned it out again hoping that by removing some of the weaker seedlings the stronger ones have more room to grow. I'll keep you posted.
Scabiosa - week 7
week 7 week 3
Literally in the last few days I've pricked out my scabiosa, the first 2 sets of true leaves are only just starting to show and usually I'd wait until they are little more developed before pricking out. However they were looking a bit leggy so thought they'd benefit from being moved into a 9cm pot.
Campanula - week 7
If you look very closely you'll see the first sign of germination, it appears that the surface sown, smaller seeds take a little longer to germinate!
Ranunculus - week 7
week 7 week 3
It's good to see the ranuncuuls coming up so quickly, as the risk of frost has passed they are now planted out in my cut flower patch.
Anemone - week 7
They took a few weeks to get going but now they've started they're off! I've put the anemones in a container because my winter sown anemones are still going strong in my cut flower patch and I don;t have the room right now for another batch..
The May Seed Box - Statice, Globe Amaranth, Sweet William, Bergamot and Strawflower
Statice - week 2.5
The statice germinated super-quickly and already has it's first set of true leaves so I pricked these out yesterday. I am going to leave them in the greenhouse for another week and will then probably start to harden them off.
Globe Amaranth, Sweet William and Bergamot - week 2.5
All these 3 seeds germinated at about the same time, they are currently in the greenhouse and as soon as they get their first set of true leaves, I'll prick them out, but so far so good.
Strawflower - week 2.5
Another surface sown seed with no sign of germination yet, but am keeping a close eye and the first sign of germination and the plastic cover will be off to allow the seeds to benefit from the air and light.
Comentários