The Hardy Ones Bloom, Die but Live to Flower Again
One thing is certain, and the rest is lies;
The flower that once has blown, for ever dies. --from the Rubaiyat
Accurate in its description of transient annuals, Omar Khayyam’s verse fortunately does not justly reflect the permanence of perennials. They bloom one year and then may die back, but they always return.
Many gardeners today are searching for tenacious flowers that endure, but most of us march straight to the nursery to find such plants. Growing perennials from seed hardly enters the mind. However, if you have some patience and choose carefully, you can raise excellent perennials from seed.
My favorite six perennials grow easily from seed and produce an abundance of flowers, although admittedly for a shorter period than do annuals. Most will even bloom the first season, if you don’t lose any time getting them started.
Profuse Bloom
Shasta daisies receive top billing for profuse bloom and persistence in the flower border. I’ve been impressed by nearly all varieties in my garden except the dwarf singles, which bloomed too briefly. A newly introduced large-flowered compact single called Starburst sounds promising.
Coreopsis Sunray is also at the top of my list because of its smashing gold blooms and its rugged survival capacity. Although one garden designer I know rejects coreopsis, complaining of its sprawl and propensity to self-seed, I can’t resist its sunny charm even when it slouches.
Complimenting the gold coreopsis are two other free-blooming, durable perennials. Gaillardia (blanket flower), bearing red daisy-like flowers with yellow borders, bloomed early in my garden last summer and, after a light July shearing, began flowering again in the fall and continued all winter.
Equally easy to grow is Rudbeckia hirta Goldsturm, commonly called black-eyed Susan. Perennial pinks or dianthus combine fragrance, old-world charm, attractive gray-green foliage and profuse bloom.
Rounding out my top six are dwarf dahlias, which are actually tubers, but they function much like perennials. Some of the best dwarf dahlias are Rigoletto, Sunburst, and the award-winning Redskin.
Fast Dahlias
Dahlias bloom in their first season, and by the end of the season they produce many underground tubers for next year’s garden. You can leave them in the ground, because Southland gardens seldom freeze below the soil; or you can lift and divide them, which is probably healthier but a lot harder.
These are my favorites, but almost any perennial can be started from seed, except those named kinds that must be grown from cuttings if they are to look the same as the parent plant.
Expert Advice:
Chris Watruba, founder of Perennial Adventure in San Diego County, specializes in growing perennials from seed. For nearly all seeds, she recommends the same technique, adapted here for home growers.
Start with a clean, preferably new, plastic 4-inch pot filled with a packaged potting mix. For most varieties, place seeds on the soil surface and cover with a layer of potting mix as thick as the seed. However, read the instructions on the seed package carefully because some seeds require light to germinate, so must not be covered at all but simply pressed into the soil.
Firm the soil gently by pressing it with the bottom of another pot or your hand. Wet the pot thoroughly by setting it in a water-filled pan. Don’t water from above or the seeds will float to the surface or otherwise be disturbed. Gardeners without greenhouses should cover the seed pot with a plastic bag in which you have cut a few air holes. Place the plastic-covered pot outside in a bright spot but not in full sun.
Five to 30 Days to Start
Perennials usually germinate in five to 30 days. The hardest part of growing anything from seed is maintaining sufficient moisture. That’s why the plastic bag helps.
Wait for seedlings to grow two to four true leaves, but expect small seeds to take longer to develop than larger seeds.
Prepare a flat with potting soil. Make planting holes in the soil with a pencil. Then carefully turn the seedlings out of their pot onto a sheet of newspaper. Lift each seedling by its leaves (never by its fragile stem) and transplant it to the flat. Provide light shade for a week.
Mist (with a special mist nozzle or a spray bottle) daily until the seedlings are growing vigorously. When they appear as tall and strapping as the seedlings seen at nurseries, move them to their permanent garden positions or to a nursery row for further nurturing.
Some seed catalogues that feature perennials include: The Country Garden, Crivitz, Wis. 54114; Park Seed, Greenwood, S.C. 29647-0001; Thompson & Morgan, Jackson, N.J. 08527; or Burpee Seed Co., Warminster, Pa. 18974.
