Blooming First Year from Seed

Any suggestions for perennials which bloom from seed in their first year?

Hardy Hibiscus are one example of reliable bloom. Any others you have experience with and can recommend?

Thanks, John

I have had very good luck with Dianthus, Linaria, different kinds of 'daisies', some Echinacea and Rudbeckia, etc. I have some hardy hibiscus that were put in the ground last spring and the spring before that STILL haven't bloomed! What is the secret? My pale pink ones and white ones bloomed quick. The others were marked as red, burgundy and I think apricot. Still waiting. LOL Maybe this will be the year. :)

Thank, Badseed. The hardy Hibiscus have been so easy, maybe 4 out of 50 pots stubbornly wait until the second summer. They need full sun, and lots of water. Appreciate your suggestions. John

Agastache will bloom the first year from seed. I've heard rumors that some foxglove, cranesbill and hollyhocks will. Can't vouch for those though. Except maybe the hollyhocks. Mine seem to be fairly perennial, and usually bloom the first year. What are you looking for? If you are looking for fast blooms that keep coming, you might want to try some re-seeding annuals. Brazilian verbena is a good one.

Naturpatch

The Thompson & Morgan catalogue has a blue flower beside the listing of all perennials that bloom the 1st year from seed. Very helpful.

Poppysue is good at these as well as the excellent suggestions above.

The foxglove that Naturepatch mentioned is D. purpurea 'Foxy'.

A few UK catalogues indicate first year flowering by various methods. Sown early enough the following might be of interest:

Tanacetum coccinea
Achillea millefolium
Heliopsis scabra
Salvia x superba
Astilbe x arendsii
Papaver miyabeanum
Papaver nudicaule
Linum perenne
Aster alpinus
Catananche caerulea
Geum Mrs Bradshaw and Lady Strathen
Verbena bonariensis
Asclepias incarnata and tuberosa
Centauria montana


This message was edited Wednesday, Feb 26th 5:51 PM

Wanted to add

Sorry I'm not trying to be snobby by using only the botanical names above, I just can't think of the common names that both you and I would know :)

LOL Baa! You are great! John, I have seeds for the Heliopsis, Verbena and Asclepias if you don't have them already. May have Linum too.

naturepath, have you grown the Agastache? I've never tried those yet. I did grow some Black Hollyhocks from seed last year, and had one spectacular spike. There is a nice row of them, and I expect great things this year.

golddog, thanks, I am a big fan of the T & M catalogue.

Baa, thank you for the good suggestions. I prefer the Latin names, myself, as it is clear just which plant is meant.

Badseed, thanks for the seed offer. Have grown those already, all have bloomed except the Asclepias. I have a nice clump of those, they are suppposed to be white, so that will be special.

I am sure I will also have seedlings and one year old plants of Agastache foeniculum if you want to try it. It is a very nice plant with a great scent and pretty purple flowers. I am just trying to be helpful but am feeling sort of like a pushy sales person. LOL

Badseed, nothing wrong with sharing your enthusiasm!

Usually when I try those bloom first year from seeds, I really don't get a good show until the next year. I've had the best luck with Coreopsis and catmints. Let us know what works for you.

Here's a link to T&Ms first year bloomers http://www.thompson-morgan.com/seeds/uk/list_flowers-1st-year_1.html

We seed in December, quite a munber will bloom while still in the pots. Baa, those names work for me!
ßernie

poppysue, great list!

Thanks, Trish_M, for the suggestions.

poppysue, thanks, that is a great list. I did read them all, and think T & M might be a little overly optimistic about first year bloomers. Some good ideas there, though.

Bernie, any recommendations from your experiences? Thanks!

The earlier started, the better chance of first year bloom. Now is a good time here in zone 6.

We sometimes find that the plant is weaker/slower to grow if allowed to flower in the first year. We keep an eye on how the plant is doing first, if it's not big enough to cope with the first buds we take them off and wait a year.

Early sowing (it's getting a bit late for that now) are good if you have the environment to nurture the seedlings and plantlets. We usually sow in summer/autumn (we haven't this past year) rather than spring if we want flowers from a perennial.

Yes, I have grown the agastache from seed. And I'll admit that I don't always have a lot of luck with growing from seed. I did, however, manage to have just one 'Heather Queen' agastache survive for me last year. It was less than an inch tall at the end of May, and was blooming by mid-July. Anise hyssop will also bloom the first year. And the leaves have such a wonderful scent to them. I could probably find some anise hyssop seeds, if you're interested.

naturepatch

I really love Malva sylvestris, since it blooms the first year. It takes the place of hollyhocks that seldom bloom the first year and do not survive our cold, wet winters. Malva mauritiana and M. zebrina put on quite a show for a good part of our summer... they also offer lots of good seed.

Foxy Foxglove are a biennial, but bloom first year if started early. In most climates they reseed like crazy and you don't have to plant them again.