Growing Wise : annuals

Nasturtiums on my mind

Elisabeth — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 11:44:00 GMT

Even as the grape hyacinths come into bloom and the last of the daffodils open up in my yard, I, like other gardeners am thinking ahead. That's why I am planting nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) seeds. The closest that many people get to nasturtiums is seeing them as part of the packaged "edible flower mixes" sold in the specialty produce sections of many supermarkets. The flowers taste peppery and are good in salads, but I think they lend even more spice to the summer garden.

The blooms have five petals apiece (double-flowered varieties are also widely available) and are vaguely trumpet shaped. They grow profusely and stay close to the rounded green leaves. My favorite nasturtiums are the old-fashioned ground hugging varieties that are great for the front of the border, flourish in pots and make a colorful edging for vegetable or herb gardens. I am especially fond of 'Peach Melba', a cultivar with cream petals and a red throat. This year I may try one of the climbing varieties as well.

Nasturtiums have big, pea-like seeds that are easy to handle. Soak them in water for about eight hours before planting to loosen the hard outer covering.

Perhaps the most wonderful thing about nasturtiums is that they absolutely love lean soil and don't mind drought. Put them in rich soil and overfertilize and you will get an exuberant crop of leaves but few flowers. But if you plant them in sunny space, water until they are established and pretty much forget about them thereafter, they will generally reward you with lots of flowers. Pick a few for a salad, but enjoy the rest in the garden. Nasturtiums are about as close as most of us will get to a horticultural free lunch.

Sunflowers

Elisabeth — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 12:33:00 GMT

Last week I went to the Philadelphia Flower Show, the annual garden extravaganza that draws visitors from all over the northeast, if not the country. This year's theme was "Bella Italia", with display gardens, large and small, centered on Italian themes. The graphic on all the Flower Show literature and in the hall itself was a giant, golden sunflower on a blue background. It reminded me of Italy, but, more than that, it reminded me of how much I love sunflowers (Helianthus).

How long has it been since you have grown sunflowers? If your answer is more than one year, it has been too long. Sunflowers, of course, have been favorites in plain old backyard gardens for years. With seeds big enough for a child to hold and plant, they are often the first plants that young gardeners grow. They sprout quickly, shoot upwards impressively and embody summer joy when they open. Birds love the flowerheads, long after the petals have gone, making sunflowers the perfect habitat plant.

In the last ten or fifteen years, sunflowers have begun keeping more elegant company, showing up in high-end florist bouquets, high-concept garden layouts and glossy shelter magazine spreads. The white varieties have been used in elegant, all-white summer arrangements and container gardening enthusiasts have discovered the more compact growers.

Sunflowers' beauties will not be news to those of you who have grown them all along. For those who will be trying them for the first time this year, welcome to the fashionable fold. Everything old is new again.

Seed Starting

Elisabeth — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 20:36:00 GMT

Lately everyone is talking about saving money by starting plants from seed. This is a great idea, but be forewarned. Most of us who have only sunny windowsills (no greenhouses or grow lights) are somewhat limited in our seed-starting efforts. That being said, all is not lost and you can still start seeds--the heart of the matter is what seeds you choose to start, how you start them and when you start them.

Suppose you want to start tomatoes or nasturtiums or cosmos from seed. The first thing you need to do is check the last frost date for your area. One quick way is to go to the Old Farmer's Almanac website, http://www.almanac.com/garden/frostus.php, and check the listing for the city nearest your home. Once you have found out your last frost date, select a day about three weeks before that to start your seeds. Plant them according to the package directions and put them in a sunny windowsill. If you can, water from the bottom, as this helps prevent damping off disease, which kills seedlings. When the last frost date rolls around, you should have small seedlings. Transfer them to the outdoors in a protected spot. Make sure to bring them inside if a cold snap or severe weather threatens. Water regularly. Within a week or so the seedlings will have grown larger and will be "hardened off"--accustomed to the outdoors. When that happens, you can plant your seedlings in the garden, taking care to water them as they become established.

Starting seeds in this way gives you a three week jump on the season, but does not give your indoor seedlings a chance to become weak and leggy. If you want to start your seeds any earlier, you should invest in an adjustable grow light that can be raised as your seedlings get bigger.

Remember that most garden annuals like zinnias, marigolds, cosmos, nasturtiums, California poppies, larkspur and a host of others can be sown directly in the ground after the last frost date is past. You won't have flowers quite as soon, but you will not have to worry about hardening off and transplanting.