digitalis from seed

I have tried unsucessifully to grow D. from seed, and have bought them from wally world, in bloom, and have never seen any seedlings.I have tried the seeds in a mix to transplant, but no results.I have noticed a plant growing under a gardenia that looks much like a digitalis, but I didn't plant it.I have watched this plant for some time, and although it only had folage last Yr. I found it interesting.Now I think it is a digitalis, but its two hundred yards from where I was trying to get them to grow.I need help with growing these beautiful plants.Mike

Yes, it is indeed a Digitalis and from the picture, it looks like it's getting ready to bloom.

If you leave the flowers on the plant until they're dried up, you should have lots of seedlings. They normally self-sow prolifically.

Very pretty and healthy looking, and ready to bloom. Most digitalis are biennals, and self sow in my garden. You might want to try collecting a few of the seedpods when they form, and scatter the seeds where you want them. They should sprout there, stay green through winter, and bloom next year. Once you get them going you could have them forever. I initially wintersowed them, but I think they have it under control themselves now.

Karen

Mine haven't self-sown, and I've found the trick to growing them is to plant alot, as they seem to be fairly delicate seedlings. I have had the best luck both with sowing and with growth and flowering with the 'Camelot' series of cultivars. For me, they are hardier, grow faster and bloom sooner than the other varieties I've tried.

I've sprouted them in both sterile vermiculite and in regular soil, indoors in the winter. I've sprouted them both with and without bottom heat (nothing fancy here--just set the tray on a heating pad on 'low'), and in a south facing window. Usually sow them in January and transplant them when they get their first true leaves into potting soil. That's the tricky part--the stems and roots are very delicate--always lose many of them at this point. Move the survivors outside (still in pots) after frost and, eventually, when large enough, into a bed. The Camelots may bloom the first year--mine often do--but the other cultivars do not. Either way, they will overwinter and bloom the second year, so I just keep putting some out each year so that something is always blooming.

This message was edited Apr 15, 2008 2:01 PM

Mike: That plant is going to bloom soon, try collecting the seeds after they mature, and try again. They really are easy to grow from seed. The ones I direct sowed last year remained green all winter here in Ohio, and, given a little shade, they are tough plants. If you harvest the seeds, sow them fresh, keep moist for a few weeks, I can't imagine some won't grow.

I also wintersowed some in January. (Outside, in a milk jug, placed out in the snow in January). I now have a jug full of tiny little seedlings, no muss, no fuss.

Karen

yup, yup, you can see the flower stalk starting it's upward journey.

Here's what works for me: After the seed pods have dried, I cut off the stem with the pods intact, then cut the bloom stalk into sections and toss them in the general direction of where I'd like them to grow. Perhaps that stalk gives the seedlings a bit of shade/cover that helps them to survive. And often another flower stalk will grow on the original plant.

grannymarch--very interesting way to plant digitalis seeds! (-:

I wintersowed five kinds in the past few months. I can't recall the varieties, but camelot is one of them. It remains to be seen if I can get these to grow in the garden. Although they have grown well in the past, even under trees.

There are so many different kinds of seed offered, I am sure there is at least one for every garden!

Are you surface sowing your seeds? Digitalis needs light to germinate. That's why grannymarsh's tossing works so well.

And all this time I thought it was skill.......

Karen that is exactly what I did, with the cut off milk jug, but my soil may be too harsh for the tiny seed.In other words, I have never grown one from seed, and I can't take credit for the one in the pic.I don't know how that got their.
Granny, I like your idea.I usually go to wally world, and spend $10.00 on their close out, and plant them in the beds.I may not have reconised the seedlings, and coltivated the area.I grow some ausom weeds.Mike

That's a good point Hart....I forgot to mention that....they do need light to germinate. Still not sure why mine don't self-sow, but I mulch pretty deeply at that location, so I suspect that is why....

But Granny it is your skill. LOL

Yes, mulch will most likely keep the seeds from getting light. I know my cleome, which also needs light, stopped self sowing when I added mulch to the bed where it was growing. It's easy to gather the seeds yourself and scatter them in a spot where they can grow or overwinter them in pots.

I was thrilled to see this thread as I started several D. from seed last year supposedly early enough to bloom the first year ( in the GH in Dec.) so I was pretty tickled to go out the other day and see a bloomhead on each of the 6 that survived my mothering LOL

You know that I have had problems with the old fassion hollhochs, getting them to the second year, and I had been bit by the D. snake also.I had some of the old fassion HH come up, and blight ate them.Some tell me that my beds are too organic, and HH likes dirt.If plane old dirt is what they need, I have that too.So I'll know its not me, I am going to try this combination again.HH, and Ditgitalis, in the origanal bed I prepaired for them.I did spray the ground with daconil, and I can add more red dirt. Any pointers will be appreciated.Mike

Oh yes, and it renews my hope in both digitalis, and old fasion hollyhochs.I think it turned out fairly nice.Mike

Fogot the pic

This message was edited May 4, 2008 2:16 PM

Here is the pic, in bloom.You were right.Mike

Hey,
Certainly I have a cooler growing season, but to be frank I treat digitalis like a weed. I buy my seeds in the early spring but then wait till about the third week in June when the Digitalis naturally would go to seed. Then as Granny did I walk throw seeds in my shrub borders and woodland area . I couple this with broadcasting seed from last years plants. The plants never grow exactly where I think they will but it is a very inexpensive mass planting. kt

I went away for the weekend and came back to these...it was a nice treat :o