The traditional gardener's gardener grows plants from vegetable or flower seeds. Nurturing plants from the earliest germination to full bloom is a wonderful experience. Children love to get involved and watch the flowers grow... I've included links to easy-to-grow seeds lower down. Alternatively, with little time, difficult flower seed perhaps needing heat, or too late in season, you can find more information on this link about growing from
live plants - potted, plugs, bedding strips, supplied direct.
You get the biggest choice of flowers by using flower seed packets, including the latest prize winning blooms for you to grow at home. Advice on sowing and growing is further down this page.
New Method
The easiest (or laziest) way to grow seeds is from Pre-Seeded Mats and tapes - detailed below. The range can be somewhat limited but, American gardeners have quite a lot to choose from. Small mats are available for growing herbs in pots. Bigger mats can be cut to size and shape for borders. Seed tapes are for plants grown in rows, like vegetables and Sunflower...
SMALL SEED MATS FOR POT HERBS & VEG
Couldn’t be easier. Just fill pot with compost, place the mat on top and water. Available for pot grown herbs and vegetables.
For the U.K. find
Grow Easy Seed Mats for Pot Herbs & Seed Tapes here
. American flower seed collections for borders and themed gardens see side bar >>>
ADVANTAGES OF PRE-SOWN MATS
- Flowers are spaced out correctly to avoid need for thinning
- Easy and simple for children to use
- Mats can be cut to any size or shape
- The mats are natural and biodegradable
- The seeds get off to a good start - but you must keep the mats well-watered
- Mats available for attractive flower mixes & small flower gardens chosen around a theme
- Seed tapes are good for growing in rows.
Also on these links you’ll find flower seed varieties that are in fact easy to grow – hence the name; available in both America and U.K.
When starting seed to transplant into rows, I recommend the row tray. Unless you already happen to have a spare piece of clean guttering to make do with,
the row tray is a real handy piece of kit.
Row Tray available in America on this link
Row Tray available to U.K. gardeners here
TRADITIONAL SEED
Flower seeds in packets usually cost you far less per plant than live plants. They are the best choice wherever
a mass of color is needed and
seed can be broadcast. Herb gardens and wild flower patches for birds and bees are examples.
To easily cultivate the fine crumb soil needed to germinate seeds, I fully recommend the Soil Mill. There's nothing quite like it.
Ordinary seed is often dusted with a fungicide to reduce disease attack. But you can get
organic seeds in U.K.
of more resistant varieties harvested from organically grown plants and the seeds not treated with chemicals.
Organic Flower Seeds are available in America here
Remember: Seed Compost or Multi-Purpose Compost generally provide more consistent germination conditions than typical soil as long as you maintain moisture – also 'no-dig' gardeners and 'mulch users' may prefer to plant out.
The cost of seed compost, modules, trays, or pots is especially worthwhile when using more expensive seed.
F1 HYBRID SEED
These seeds grow into plants that are particularly attractive for one reason or another. Each time they are produced by hand pollination of the chosen parents, and this makes them more expensive. F1 seed packets may contain fewer flower seeds but the plants they grow are prized by gardeners for superior qualities such as appearance, vigour and disease resistance.
Live plants are often a better option with hard to grow seeds, seeds requiring heat, or for those exquisite and refined dot plants not offered as seeds.
PELLETED OR COATED SEED
These are easy to see and handle which is especially good for small seeds. They are less attractive to pests such as birds. The coatings may contain plant stimulants but previously I have found they need to be well watered.
This may come in handy:
Lawn seed protection mat
protects seeds from bird attack & binds new lawn surface - great for small lawns - biodegradeable.
Easily break rough soil down to the fine crumb seed bed essential for sowing outdoors with the
Soil Mill for U.K. gardeners
on this link.
Available to American gardeners as the
Wolf Garten Soil Crumbler on this link
.