How long from seed to garden?
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[Deleted User]
Posts: 29
[Deleted User]
Posts: 29
[Deleted User]
Posts: 29
[Deleted User]
Posts: 29
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Not sure about the others but stipa tenuissima seeds very easily. I started off with one and by the end of the year I had 6.
It's actually classed as invasive sometimes but the seedlings are easy enough to pull up if you don't want them.
non of the named cultivars can be relied upon to come true from seed
Stipa tenuissima is easy, seed around the garden, you'd have some flowers next year. I have never had a seedling from S. gigantea which suggests it's not so willing. Grasses are generally easy though.
Phlomis are very easy as well but it will be P. tuberosa not the cultivar 'Amazone' (whatever the seller tells you) it will be seed from 'Amazone'. A few flowers next year maybe.
Heleniums are easy but you don't get those lovely russett/oranges (at least, I didn't)
A quicker and barely more expensive option is to buy one plant and use it as propagating material rather than flowers for the garden. Cut the flowers off and take cuttings or split up
In the sticks near Peterborough
I've had a couple of attempts at growing stipa gigantea from seed, so far none has germinated. It requires stratification, and at very specific temperatures which, as an amateur, I find it difficult to provide. Unless I've been unlucky, I think it's a tricky one.
Agree with Nut - buy one plant, split it, and take cuttings right from the base of the plant where they meet the root (if you can get a bit of root with the cutting so much the better). I turned one Salvia Caradonna into 3 divisions plus 5 cuttings this way.
Keep your eyes peeled for garden centre stock that you can split into the maximum number of plants!
If you want to fill your beds rapidly, annuals might be the way to go, if only for the first year while your perennials beef up a bit.
I always look at the bottom of plants before the top and pick the most dividable. I once took a saw to a weigela that had 2 main stems, right through the middle of the root ball, hoping both had plenty of root. It worked.
both halves grew
In the sticks near Peterborough
It's worth bisiting garden centres and looking for their clearance section, often the plants are great for dividing or propagating from and very cheap. I bought a couple of Russian sage (£1) that split very easily and propagated about a dozen plants from. Achillea - 3 plants last year - about 20 this year through division. Lavender - propagated 100s of plants from a small stock and rosemary - over 500 plants from half a dozen originals. Some will take time to have an impact but next year will be here before you know it! Also keep an eye out for local amateur plant sales - lots of bargains to be had - a few on this weekend in my area.