Sowing Seeds in Summer

This is not my white picket fence, but I wish it was!

How pretty are these hollyhocks?

I've tried a few times to grow Hollyhocks from nursery-bought seedlings, but they have never done well. Who knows what's gone wrong? Perhaps it as simple as not having found the perfect spot for them to be happy and prosper. I haven't given up just yet. There is something about failure that brings out the stubborn in me.

I spotted this pretty display of tall, statuesque Hollyhocks when we drove through Uxbridge, Ontario recently. They have given me fresh inspiration to try, try again. This time I am going to grow my hollyhocks from seed. The single form of the flower are said to be more resistant to rust, so those are the seeds I am going to try growing.

Generally we think of spring as the time for sowing seeds, but I have found that summer is the perfect time for starting a range of flowers including. 

Foxgloves are a good example. They're a biennial flower that produce a rosette of green leaves the first summer and tall, stately flowers the following spring. Then they set seed and finish out their life cycle. 

Foxgloves grow naturally on the edge of woodlands, so the conditions they like best are part-shade and rich, well-drained soil. 

Foxglove in my herb garden.

Growing Foxgloves from Seed:

You can find Foxglove plants growing in pots at your local nursery, but the most cost effective way to grow them is from seed. Start Foxglove seeds from mid-May to as late as mid-July. Usually I sow them sometime in July in a small nursery bed. Then in late summer/early fall I move the young seedlings into their final positions in the main garden.

It always amazes me that tiny foxglove seeds produce such large flowers. The seeds are as fine as a grain of sand! If you are sowing your seeds in the garden, begin by turning your soil over and adding some compost. Rake it even. 

Foxglove seeds need light to germinate, so don't bury them! Instead scatter the seed as evenly as you can over the surface of the soil. Gently rake the seeds in making sure not to cover them. Finally water them with a very, very gentle spray. Be patient. Foxglove seeds will take 20-30 days to germinate.

Thin your seedlings as you would a vegetable crop. You'll have less Foxgloves, but they will be larger and stronger plants. In the second year, your Foxgloves will produce flowers, and trust me, they are well worth the wait! 

One caution: Foxgloves are poisonous, so if you have pets that like to nibble in the garden, growing foxgloves is probably not a good idea. (Read more about poisonous plants here.)

Growing Canterbury Bells from Seed:

Canterbury Bells are another biennial that I have successfully grown from seed. They like full sun with light afternoon shade and moist, well-drained soil. 

Sow them in late spring or early in summer (get started right away if you want to plant them this year). Like foxgloves, they need light to germinate, so sow them on the surface of the soil. Keep the soil moist until they germinate 14-21 days later. In the first year, they grow a rosette of leaves and in the following summer, they produce the pretty bells you see here. 

Canterbury Bells grow about 18-36 inches tall. The flowers range in color from pink to white to purple.

Growing Sweet William from Seed from Seed:

Sweet William is a biennial I've admired in other gardens, but haven't grown them myself from seed. I must see if I can remedy that this summer. They like sun, and rich, well-drained soil. (Note: There are also perennial forms of Sweet William as well.)

As with Foxgloves and Canterbury Bells, sow biennial Sweet William in the spring or summer if you want flowers the following year. Prepare the ground by adding some compost and then sow the seeds on the surface of the soil. Cover lightly with soil (about 1/8 inch) and gently give them a good soak. Seeds should take 10-14 days to germinate. If you want to transplant your seedlings, do it in early fall.

Sweet William bloom in late spring/early summer. Colors include white, pink, maroon, purple and bi-colors. The plant grows a low mound of green leaves with flowers on tall, upright stems. In flower they reach a height of about 12-14". 

Hollyhocks at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Hamilton, ON

Hollyhocks are actually a short-lived perennial, but they act as a biennial. They grow leaves the first year and flower in the second. On average hollyhocks live for two years, but if you deadhead the flowers, the plant may store enough energy to last as long as three years. Cutting them back to the ground in the fall and mulching around the crown may also help extend their life.

Some varieties grow 2'-3', while others can reach a height of as much as 6'. Hollyhocks come in an array of colors that include white, pink, yellow, red, maroon and black. As well as the classic single form that I have shown here, the flowers come in many petaled forms as well.

Hollyhocks at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Hamilton, ON

How to Plant Hollyhocks Outdoors:

Hollyhocks need full sun and moist, rich well-drained soil. Begin by preparing the planting area by adding some compost or aged animal manure to improve your soil. 

Hollyhocks have large round seeds that should be planted just below the surface of the soil (about 1/4 inch). This best mimics their habit of self-seeding by dropping their seeds to the ground. Keep the soil moist to encourage the seeds to germinate, which usually occurs in 1-2 weeks. 

Hollyhocks naturally re-seed themselves in the late summer, so I figure that would be the best time to think about planting my seeds. From everything I have read, Hollyhock seedlings don't like to be moved, so I plan to sow them directly along my picket fence. 

Trail garden at the university of Guelph.

Pests & Diseases:

The bad news is that hollyhocks can fall pray to a number of insect pests including Japanese Beetles, sawflies and spider mites.

Hollyhocks are also susceptible to rust and powdery mildew. Usually fungal problems first appear on lower leaves and spreads upward. To avoid issues with rust, plant hollyhocks in an open spot that offers good air circulation. It is also a good idea to avoid splashing the leaves, so water them at ground level.

Lupins in my back garden.

I should also mention that summer is a good time to think about collecting seeds.

The Lupins in my garden have set seed, so I also hope to gather and sow them into a new position in the front garden. Like Hollyhocks, Lupins are a short-lived perennial. I have a feeling the flower would be fuller and more generous if I had moist conditions, but I am happy enough just to have them in my dry garden.

Lupins need a period of cold which mimics winter to germinate. I'll prepare an area in the front garden and sow them sometime in August.

Wish we luck with my latest attempt at growing Hollyhocks! 

(If you've had more success than I have, I'd love to hear any of your tips and tricks!)

Volunteers that Lend a Gardener an Unrequested Helping Hand

Nothing endures but change.

Heraculitus (540 BC-480 BC), from Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers

If your vision for your garden is adaptable and you take delight in little surprises, then you may be interested in inviting self-seeding volunteers into your garden.

Forget-me-nots are probably the most familiar garden self-seeders. They look wonderful as an understory for tulips and early spring bloomers. The only drawback is that Forget-me-nots have a bad habit of turning into a bedragled brown mess covered in powdery mildew in late spring. You either love them or think they are an annoying weed!

While Forget-me-nots may be the most common, there are many other self-seeders that can add color to your garden. Here are some volunteers at work in my garden.

There are large sections of my garden under the cover of mature trees, and so I welcome anything that can take the shade. Under the canopy of a large maple, Violets add early spring color. Resilient little troopers, Violets have now self-seeded into both sunny and shaded crevices throughout the garden.

My neighbors across the street have a whole bed dedicated to Calendula, a happy orange and yellow annual. Before I knew it, I had uninvited Calendula in my own front garden. And now this year, just about everyone at this end of the block has Calendula in their garden! ( Just keep that vigor in mind!)

Growing up, I wasn't fond of Calendulas in my mother's garden, because though I like the flowers, I thought that the seed heads were kind of ugly. I didn't consider planting it in my own garden for this reason.

I must confess that in these last couple of years, I have come to better appreciate Calendula. Undemanding of anything but a sunny spot, it shows up every summer to add a punch of bright color to my July garden and keeps blooming until late fall. These days, I just lop off most of those ugly seed heads as they appear. If the plant gets messy looking, I rip it out.

Like Calendula, Feverfew is a happy-go-lucky flower that shows up in the oddest nooks and crannies. I welcome it wherever it turns up.

Whenever I see poppies, I think of my mother. She loved poppies and collected as many different varieties as she could find. A few years back, Mum sent me seeds in the mail and I have had annual poppies in my garden every year since.

Just be forewarned, annual poppies are such great self-seeders that can easily take over a flower bed if you let them.

Yellow Fumitory is another shade loving self-seeder. I love the fern-like leaves and it blooms non-stop all summer. It can spread readily, but any unwanted seedlings are easy to pull out.

Though, as you can see, I already have a collection of plant volunteers, I still have a wish list of self-seeding biennials that I hope to add to my garden. After seeing hollyhocks in a nearby garden in Norval, I'd love to add these tall beauties to my own garden. 

Even though hollyhocks like the sun (which is at a premium in my garden) and are prone to rust a fungal disease that leaves unsightly orange spots, I want to find a spot at the back of one of my borders for them.

Foxglove is one biennial that I keep trying unsuccessfully to introduce to my garden. I have tired plants in the past without luck, so next summer I think I will give seeds a go. If you have any tips for me on growing foxgloves, I'd love to hear them!