Growing Guides
Anemone and Ranunculus
Anemones and Ranunculus- Soak your corms for 5-6 hours. Plant 1” deep into a prepared garden bed anytime from early October to late November. Sprouting should occur after about 2 weeks and may continue throughout the winter. Keep the garden bed moist but not soaking wet as corms rot easily. Cold protection is needed for best quality plants but not absolutely necessary (Ranunculus benefit more from the protection than anemones). First stems of anemones will be short, they lengthen as they produce more stems. Anemones begin blooming in mid-March, Ranunculus in early April.
Other Bulbs
Muscari- Plant 5” deep, 3-4” apart; 9 per square foot in well draining soil or a pot. Bulbs should naturalize over a few years. Bloom time is anywhere from mid-March to mid-April depending on variety and weather fluctuations. Muscari may sprout and grow foliage in the fall, this is normal and fine.
Camassia- These prefer moist, fertile soil- they do well in heavy clay soils, even in some wetter areas. Plant 5” deep, 5” apart. Bloom time is mid-April to mid-May. Perennializes well.
Alliums- Plant 6-8” deep, 8-10” apart. Alliums prefer a site that stays drier during the summer. Christophii blooms around Mother’s day usually, Cowanii is earlier in April. Cowanii often sprouts foliage in the fall- this is normal. Alliums perennialize well, occasionally they skip a year blooming if we don’t get enough cold in the winter.
Frittilaria- Plant immediately- these don’t like being out of the ground. Plant 2-3” deep, good drainage, few inches apart. These don’t make a huge plant so you can get a lot in a small space. Bloom in mid march to mid April.
Crocus- Early bloomer, February to March depending on weather. Plant 4” deep, 5” apart
Narcissus and Snowdrops- plant 6” deep and 6” apart. Bloom time is from early March to mid April, depending on variety for Narcissi. Snowdrop are usually late March to mid April in 7b.
Sweet Peas— Plant as soon as possible after receiving your plants. Keep plants outdoors in bright light and well watered until you can plant them. Do not keep indoors- it’s too warm and the plants will get leggy. Seedling roots don’t usually fill the container during the growing process- this is normal. We suggest using a butter knife to get your seedlings out. Sweet pea roots want to grow down so they congregate around the bottom of the plug container. It’s fine if all the dirt falls off- just plant into a hole and place where the stem turns green level with the soil.
For more info on growing out your sweet peas, check out this blog post!
Plants- Perennial and Annual
Perennial
Japanese Anemones- Dig a whole as deep as the pot and 1.5 times the width. Compost added to the hole is beneficial. Plant in a partial sun/shade area. Japanese Anemones will go dormant in winter. Mark where you planted so you’ll remember in the spring. Bloom time is late summer/fall for the Dreaming Swan variety. Mid September for other varieties.
Agastache- Dig a whole as deep as the pot and 1.5 times the width. Full sun required. Blooms early/mid summer
Lysimachia Alexander- Dig a whole as deep as the pot and 1.5 times the width. Full sun, likes moist, more fertile soil. Will spread slowly. Blooms in June, may die back in winter.
Heuchera- Partial sun/shade- they die back a bit in winter to a smaller crown and then reflush in Spring/Summer.
Salvia- very drought tolerant, full sun.
Annuals
Snapdragons, Foxglove, Campanula, Bachelor Buttons, Sweet William, Scabiosa - Plant plugs a minimum of 6” apart, 9-12” if growing in a garden bed (not for cut flower production). These are very cold hardy. They do require good drainage. Plants die off from rot more than cold in our climate. Snaps- bloom April to early May, Campanula- early May, Foxglove- early May, Bachelor Buttons- May, Sweet William- late April thru early June, Scabiosa- Late May to June. Scabiosa may need cold protection if temps drop to mid 20’s.
Sweetpeas- Plant in well draining but very fertile soil-- heavy feeders. Plants are very cold hardy, they go down to low 20’s before damage can occur. Don’t put up your trellis until March (easier to cover if needed without trellis). Plant minimum of 6” apart, 9” preferred. Trellis will need to be 7-8’. Bloom time- early May.
We have a great blog tutorial on growing sweet peas here.
**Annuals that benefit from support (netting/staking): Snaps, feverfew, campanula, bachelor buttons. All of these annuals benefit from pinching except sweetpeas and campanula. Sweetpeas will branch on their own. Campanula can be pinched but looks better with one really magnificent stem. Pinching is when you cut the stem back to 2-3 leaf pairs when it begins to grow.