Alchemilla - Growing from seed ?

Hi All

Sice i need loads of plants for my new garden i want to grow some from seed but never done it before. Can get a small greenhouse type thing but waht else do i need ?

Do i just get a tray, fill with compo and sprinke seeds on ? Need x40 Alchemilla Mollis and x52 Donard Seedling ( i can get these as plugs for £60?)

What shall i do ? How easy is it ??

Not in any rush at all.

Cheers

 

Also meant to ask or do i get the plug trays and put one seed in each ?

 

Hi
You really need to plan for this, its not the right time for a lot of seeds, consult the http://theseedsite.co.uk and it gives you loads of info about when and how to sow seeds,
There are some seeds though better sown now, for flowering next year,get down to Wilkos who are selling the seeds off 1/2 price now at most stores,as are most seed suppliers, and read the packets, get some seed trays while youre there , and most seeds are sprinkled finely over compost and lightly covered , as it is only large seed sown 1 to a pot, some seeds are as fine as pepper dust,
Any seeds you buy now will keep till next spring if kept cool and dry.

 

Was going to keep them on window cill or greenhouse for next year. What shall i get from here -

http://www.wilkinsonplus.com/bin/ve...=Propagator&searchsubmit.x=0&searchsubmit.y=0

 

If you know anyone with Alchemiila in the garden they could probably give you some seedlings - I could give you 100s, whereabouts are you?

Being nosey but what are you going to do with 52 Donard Seedling? Presumably you mean Escallonia but it would take lots of space

 

You'll have to watch where you plant Alchemiila, because it grows anywhere it can get a foothold and it spreads like wildfire. I know, I've got lots of the lovely stuff.:dh:

 

"Alchemilla Mollis"

I've grown it from seed to bulk up my border.

I have bought plug plants (e.g. from van meuwen.com) and found that a cheap way of growing perennials (and Lavender in my case). You need to be able to pot them up, and grow them on with lots of TLC, though. So you need enough pots, compost, etc., purchased before the plants arrive, and I reckon you need a greenhouse.or at the least a conservatory, to bring them on. They are very fragile at that stage, so be prepared to lose some. Going on holiday and leaving a "neighbour to water them" might well not be good enough!

 

The escallonia is probably best soursed from those hedging companies that advertise at the back of gardening magazines. if you grew it from seed it would take years to reach a decent size, and wouldn't necessarily come true from seed.... cuttings.. taken now... would be a wee bit quicker and will come true... but would still take a couple of years before they'd be big enough to plant out.

For alchemelia... find someone with existing plants, and they will have loads of self seeded plants that they'd be happy to get rid of.