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Planting natives

14 years ago

I want to have several different native flowers, and blooming as soon as possible, but I don't know how to begin. Plant seeds now, buy transplants now, seed in the spring, transplants in the spring, I just don't know what to do. What is the best way to go about getting these wildflowers in?

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lycopus
14 years ago
I have planted plugs in the fall and it worked out well, so you could get started now. Fall seeding works well too if the seed is covered, otherwise birds will have a field day. The decision whether to use plants or seed can depend on how large an area you want to cover. Transplants will almost always yield faster results but is more expensive and labor-intensive. Plants that develop large taproots, such as Silphium spp., are best grown from seed sown in place.

I rarely seed in the spring because many seeds require a cold period to germinate and I have had bad luck with "pre-stratified" seed. A fun winter project if you have ample window space or grow lights is to start seeds indoors and plant them out in the spring.
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