"Garden Flower Seeds"
"How does a flower grow?"
We are about as close to fathoming that question as we are with the chicken and egg one!!
Luckily we don't have to know the answer to enjoy the wondrous beauty of nature at it's best..
  Hybrids
Most seeds we buy are hybrids, unless you are lucky enough to belong to a local seed club or association. It's worth looking into any groups of gardeners near you who may have a 'seed saving' programme. Henry Double Day Foundation is a good source for local seed growers - Henry Doubleday.
No Time? Start your flower garden by buying the packets of regular seeds this year and save some for next year. No professional gardener will tell you to do this, BUT it does work! You have to start somewhere, and with a little care and attention, over a few growing seasons, your flower seeds will start to revert back to their original natural state. This may mean a slight change in colour, perhaps lower yields for a while but stick with it. The whole idea of growing next years flowers from this years offspring will delight and amaze - get the kids involved too.  Buying your Seeds
I was buying flower seeds from Thompson & Morgan when I was knee-high to a grasshopper, and they're still around! Their online store is pretty much a global thing and I've put a couple of links below for UK and US gardeners. For other countries, see their homepage.
Collecting seed from your garden is not only a fascinating hobby, it can also save you pots of cash. Packets of hybrid seeds will have a better germination rate, but nature comes to the rescue in pure numbers! As far as I know, there isn't a common plant that produces only one seed during it's life cycle, - you will definately collect fertile strong seeds alongside the weaker ones. And plenty of them! Wait until the seeds have developed and fully ripened before removing from the plant. Seeds are full of nutrients enclosed in a hard shell waiting for the right conditions to escape. This makes them ideal food for birds. If birds are a problem, net a few plants and let the birds have the rest. Try not to cut the flower heads too early.
Once you've cut the seed heads they should be allowed to dry for a few days in a fairly warm, dry and dark atmosphere. Lay them out on a sheet of paper or card. Remove the seeds carefully from the dried head, handling as little as possible. Lay out again on a sheet of brown paper or card and let them dry off for a few more days. Dryng the seeds in a barn or dry shed is perfect BUT look out for mice. If there is ANY possibility of a mouse attack, keep your flower seeds indoors. ( I've been caught out too many times by those darn critters!! ) Keep in a dark room - light can damage the seeds, especially strong sunlight. Keep your seeds: DRY NOT TOO COLD IN A MOUSE-FREE ENVIRONMENT OUT OF DIRECT LIGHT *********************** Storing
After a few days to a week, depending on the size of the individual seeds, your flower seeds should be ready to store. Keep seeds in airtight containers. Glass jars are perfect but again, seeds need to be kept out of the light so if you can find dark glass jars all the better. If not, either paint the outside of the jar with dark paint or wrap brown paper around it.
Write the name of the flower on the outside of the jar or use a sticker or something. Make sure it's secure and won't fall off during winter storage. If you don't have any or enough airtight containers, keep the seeds in small brown paper packages and place them all in one jar, or tin. Don't forget to label them and don't let the mice get them! The final thing to do is 'label your flower seeds' My failure to label garden seeds one year resulted in a spectacular crop - not exactly the crop I had in mind though. See the photo of my inedible courgettes here
Plant your own flower seeds next year and save pots of cash. Some flower seeds are edible; - the sunflower for example. Health food stores everywhere sell sunflower seeds as part of a healthy diet. Why not grow your own?! Some seeds though are highly poisonous. If in any doubt seeds should never be eaten.
Happy Gardening! More "Garden Seed" Reading
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