|
Growing
any of these flowers is truly as simple as
putting the seed in the ground and keeping them watered. |
| Bachelor's Buttons
(Centaurea
cyanus)
aka Corn Flower |
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms -
Late spring/summer |
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
| A |
4/15-6/15 |
24-36" by 15" |
Europe |
|
|
Sun |
Depth |
Germinate |
|
F |
1/4" |
8-10 days |
|
| Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
| 1" |
Mix |
N |
Y |
|
 Drought
tolerant. Plant where
they are to grow. Plant 3 seeds in a triangle about
6-8" apart.and 1/4" deep. When
seedlings are about 1" tall remove all but one. Leaving
more than on will result in tall lanky plants with few
blooms. Removed plants can be transplanted while the
seedlings are 1" or so tall. They
will self seed but are not invasive. Self-seeded plants
will bloom very early. Finches love the seeds!
One of my favorite
sights is to arrive in the gardens early in the morning
and see the finches as they ride the waves of the air
feasting on the bachelor button seeds. Bachelor
buttons are great for small nosegay kind of bouquets.
They work well in larger ones too but after the first
blush of bloom you are going to have flower heads going
to seed among the fresh blooms. The buds are good
for pressing but not the flower heads. |
| |
|
There are many varieties of bachelor buttons
annual, perennial short and tall. The information
here pertains specifically to the variety of seeds
contained in your kit. |
| Spider Flower
(Cleome
hassleriana)
|
|
General |
Growing
- Easy |
Blooms -
July - frost |
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
|
A-H |
5/15-6/15 |
36" x 24" |
S. Am. |
|
|
Sun |
Depth |
Germinate |
|
F |
1/4 "
1/2" |
10-14 days |
|
|
Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
| 5" |
Mix |
N |
N |
|
 Drought
tolerant, self-seeding. It does not like
to be crowded or transplanted but will tolerate
it when seedlings are 2" or less. . Sprinkle 4-5
seeds in a square foot area where you want it to
grow. Remove all but one plant and allow
to grow on.
The first time I saw cleome blooming it was in the middle of
a neighbor's field. The next spring, I saw a
seedling in my garden that looked sort of like a tomato but not
quite. My rule with plants I cannot identify is to wait
and see what they become. This one turned out to be the
same kind that was growing in my neighbor's field the year
before. The flower is amazing. It looks great in a bouquet
of just cleome's but only last a day or two. It is not
good for pressing, drying or eating and does not have a nice
fragrance but I would not consider my garden complete without
it. It is a dependable self seeder but does not germinate
until the soil is nice and warm in early June. Cut
the bloom stems back to the
first leaf it will bloom again. |
|
Cosmos
|
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms - 50 - 55 days after
germination |
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
|
A |
May-July |
3-5' -x
24-30" |
Mexico .
|
|
|
Sun |
Depth |
Germinate |
|
F |
1/4-1/2" |
7
- 21 days |
|
|
Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
|
2-3" |
Variety |
N |
N |
|
 There
are many varietoes of cosmos. We included a mixture of
these varieties in your kit.
I first
discovered cosmos when someone donated a quart ZipLoc bag of
orange cosmos,
Bright Lights at our first perennial exchange. We planted
them everywhere! They turned out to be the perfect flower
for teaching the seed cycle. Planted in the spring, by the
time school started in the fall they are in full bloom so there
were plenty of flowers to pick. The best part is that
students are able to observe the whole flower to seed
process on one plant. On the same plant there will be a
tight bud, one about to open, one half open, one in full flower,
another where the flower is fading, one where the seeds are formed
and one where they are brown and about to drop. They come
in a variety of colors and "faces" and the "Sensations" press
beautifully. |
|
|
Love in a
Puff (Cardiospermum
halicacabum) |
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms - 14-16 wks |
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
| |
|
10-12 ft tall |
|
|
|
|
Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
|
1/2" |
White |
N |
N |
|
 We are
growing this plant in our gardens for the first time this year.
Here is a
website with more photos. According to
Select Seeds, the company that donated the seeds:
Buoyant light green inflated seed capsules follow the
small white flowers. Inside each capsule reside three seeds,
each marked with a perfect white heart. The delicate, finely cut
leaves are borne on stems that reach 10-12'.
If true to this type of plant in
general, it is sure to be a self-seeder. |
| French Marigold
(Tagetes patula) |
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms - 45 days |
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
| AH |
4/15-6/15 |
12-15" x 12" |
South West |
|
|
Sun |
Depth |
Germinate |
|
F |
1/4" |
8-10 days |
|
| Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
| 1 1/2" |
Mix |
Pungent |
N |
|
 This
plant is a great addition to the gardens
it is a dependable
self-seeder. We planted bunches of seeds in the gardens
the first year and have not had to plant them since. We
just pull them out where we do not want them. They look
great in the fall garden, provide us with lots of flowers for
the students to pick and are perfect for the seed collecting
lessons because the seeds are so easy to identify.
In
addition, they are good for distracting many pests.
Not only does its strong odor literally confuse
pests looking for their favorite plants, but their roots
give off a substance which repels nematodes. The more
you have planted in the garden, the better its
effectiveness - except around green
beans. |
|
|
|
|
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms -
|
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
| A |
May 1 |
|
Y |
|
|
Sun |
Depth |
Germinate |
|
F |
|
10-12 days |
|
| Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
| |
|
N |
Y |
|
 Whatever
else may be blooming around them, sunflowers always take center
stage. What most people visualize when you mention
sunflowers are the 10 foot giants with the 18" flowers.
It's true that these are real show stoppers and I love having
them in the garden but with these you only get one flower per
plant. Of the 20 or more varieties we usually grow, my personal
favorite is the fuzzy faced Teddy bears... or, maybe the ones
with the deep burgundy flowers. Have you seen the ones that have
all of the colors of the sunset? Now you know why we grow
so many varieties.
Petals and seeds are edible.
You
will receive a package of Russian Mammoth that can
grow to 10' tall and have a single bloom and mix of
shorter varieties one with a single flower (Sunbright) and two bush
varieties that grow to about 4-5' and have multiple 6"
or so blooms (Shine and Golden Cheer). |
|
| Sweet Peas |
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms -
|
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
| |
|
|
|
|
 3-4
years ago, I planted perennial sweet peas by the bridges
in the perennial gardens. I envisioned them growing up
the railings of the bridges and peeking between the
post. They do this early in the season and look
awesome. But then they keep growing and the
bridges are not large enough to contain all of their
mass so they grow over everything within 3-4 feet of the
bridges. They are so beautiful when in bloom,
though, that I have not been able to bring myself to dig
them up. I just keep cutting them back. This
year, I am planting 7-8 new annual varieties that are
more fragrant. These will go in back of the school
in the hill gardens so they can hang down the retaining
wall and take up all the space they want.
Your package contains a fragrant
annual variety.
|
|
| Zinnia:
Short Stuff, Coral and California Giants
Mix.
|
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms -
|
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
| |
|
|
|
|
| If I had
to pick one flower for cutting, it would be zinnia. They
come in many colors, a wide range of sizes (6 inches to 6 feet)
and have many "faces". They produce lots of flowers over a
long period, are long-lived in the vase and are super easy to
grow. If they smelled as good as roses, they would be the
perfect flower. |
|
|
|
| |
|
General |
Growing - Easy |
Blooms -
|
|
Type |
Plant |
Height/Spread |
Native |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
| Size |
Color |
Fragrant |
Edible |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| "Don't judge each
day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant." Robert Louis
Stevenson |
|
