PerennialsDiscover the right perennial plants for your garden.
Q : Is there a put-on to growing perennials from source ? I ’m intimidated by the physical process . Can you help get me started?-Sam Ferrara , Merrick , N.Y.
A : Watching seedling come out from the soil is one of my greatest thrills as a nurseryman . And uprise herbaceous perennials from seed is one of gardening ’s enceinte economies . In contrast to the rigamarole of set about one-year bloom and vegetables indoors , the subprogram with perennial is simple . In fact , most perennials favor to get their start out of doors because they need some exposure to frigid , moist condition — a physical process known as stratification — to ready them for fountain shoot . This is nature ’s way of keeping seeds from emerging prematurely during a warm turn in late fall or wintertime . Over the days , I ’ve had my winner and failures , but I ’ve find out that the key is sowing overbold , viable seeds . repeated seeds should be kept dry and nerveless ( 35º to 50º F ) . So I store them ( along with wet - engross silica gel that I buy at a hobby shop ) in Tupperware in the refrigerator to prepare for wintertime sowing .
Perennial seeds are usually ready to seed as is , but those with fuzz or stalk ( husks ) should be stripped fresh . Soak heavily - coat seeds such as lupine , baptisia , andthermopsisin scalding - hot water for a few hours ; once they sink , they are ready to sow in . ( nick all the seeds with a file helps them absorb some water . ) phallus of the Ranunculaceae sept — delphiniums , peonies , anemone , hellebores , and pasque flower — should be inseminate as soon as the seed ripen after flowering , but I sow all other perennial in January and February in 4 - inch charge plate or clay mickle filled with a moistened , sterile , peat - based potting soil coalesce with an equal amount of coarse dampen builder ’s sand . After pressing the seeds into the stain , I shake a fragile ( about 1/16th inch ) bed of aquarium grit on top , as a water - economize and temperature - moderating mulch . lacrimation from below , I have a go at it the grime is fully moistened when the gumption turns benighted . Then I put them out in a faithfully cold and umbrageous area , such as the compass north side of a construction . If it snows , I shovel the white material on top . In dry climates , you may demand to water them a few times before spring . In showery climate , you ’ll need to overcompensate them with a pane of chicken feed , or the seed may rot in the waterlogged soil . Otherwise , ignore the seeds until they sprout in bounce .
Some species spud as soon as the temperature catch above 50ºF ; others look until it ’s really warm . Some will appear sporadically over a yr ’s time . A few will never come up , but do n’t take it personally . Those that do appear can be moved into their own pots in former summer and plant in the garden come autumn .
