Six new things on Saturday 16/01/21
I haven’t been out much in the garden this week so have decided to write about new things I am growing this year from seed or tubers. (The photos are not mine.)
My first is Asclepias tuberosa or butterfly flower and I bought it for the wildlife garden. It has come as tubers but I note that the RHS website says that you can propagate from seed so will do that. The wildflower plot doesn’t seem to have many bright flowers and I rather like zingy colours so this is the start of a move that way.
I have grown cauliflowers before, not easy on sandy soil, and prefer to grow a lime green one called Romanesco but this year I am also going to grow a purple one called Graffiti as well. It is supposed to tolerate heat. The colour is supposed to deepen with more sunshine so it should suit our climate. I think you would have to steam it to save the colour.
Verbena rigida Santos is a drought tolerant plant that will go well in the back border at home. The border is a hot border in terms of colour – oranges, reds, purples and yellows. I grow Verbena bonariensis all over the garden, self-seeded but this is much shorter. Again it likes a well-drained soil (there is a bit of a theme emerging here!)
It is years and years since I have grown Limanthes douglasii or poached egg flower. I am going to sow it liberally around the fruit cage and like eschscolzia it will probably grow all year round. They are great for bees and hoverflies and so if there are any seeds left over I sow them on the wildlife plot.
And finally. Yes, I do have a bag of mixed daffodils from a well-known supermarket that I haven’t planted yet but will do this week. I bought them to be part of the plant guilds around a white plum and cooking cherry trees donated by other allotment holders for the wildlife plot. There aren’t many daffodils on the plot so will add a bit of colour early in the year.
Dahlia Totally Tangerine caught my eye on Sarah Raven’s website. I have quite a few dahlias because they do not need digging up and storing over winter here but can stay in the soil. I have three tubers which will make a good sized clump in the back border.
Are you growing anything new this year?
This post is hosted by The Propagator along with lots of over SoSers.
I had already grown milkweed in the summer of 2019 but I did not do so in 2020. I must have some seeds left to sow for this year. They are very pretty flowers which in our region don’t attract too much the monarch butterflies ( since we haven’t ) but other insects pollinate them.
I am looking forward to seeing it and watching which insects are attracted to it as we don’t have monarch butterflies either.
That’s the best thing to do at this time of year – batten down the hatches, make plans and look forward to spring!!
Looks like there’s lots to look forward to.
I always find it quite frustrating at this time of year. I want to get on and sow seeds but know it isn’t really worth it until mid-february. However, there is plenty of weeding for me to do before then!