Perennials from Seed

Above is lavender 'Vicenza Blue.' I started this from seed last season at home, planted plugs in the field, and dug beautiful 1 gallon plants this spring. Perennials from seed are much more difficult to start from seed than annuals. For an entire pack of 100 seeds, maybe 1/4 to 1/2 germinate and become viable plants. They take up a lot of floor space, as they grow on twice as long in the greenhouse then annuals. Lavenders are not always fully hardy here in zone 4, but these wintered over at about 95% success with a little straw mulch. They are blooming right now, soooooo fragrant. These marginally hardy plants are best for your garden when they are grown local, or do you think the ones from California will survive better in Minnesota? Simple choice.

Above is Dianthus Bouquet Mix. It is also a 'from seed to plant' perennial now in bloom at Earthworks Gardens. The down side of perennial dianthus: they are a short lived , about 3-6 years. Dividing them will helps to prolong life. Even so, at $8 a gallon, they are a bargain compared to annuals! I also have another variety that are like mini carnations and very fragrant. There are many kinds of Dianthus often called 'pinks.' Hmmmm, they are not all pink though? The common name 'pinks' actually comes from the cut edge appearance of the flower that looks like it was cut w/a 'pinking shears.' There are also bi-ennial pinks. Bi-ennial anything has this lifespan:

Year 1- it grows foliage

Year 2 - flowers & dies, often re-seeding itself

That's it folks! That is what it is supposed to do. So when 'that beautiful Foxglove' just disappeared, it was just doing it's thing!

I OFTEN find folks get confused over the terms, annual, perennial & biennial.

I usually just try to explain the 2 simplest: perennial-think permanant, perennial permanent.

annual: think , hmmm how often do you have your 'annual?' Yep, that's right, every year, you plant them every year. Well, this is all my playtime for the day, gotta get to the field, stop out and see me, I bet I'll have green beans today!