Allotments 4 All

Produce => Wildlife forum => Topic started by: Digitalis on January 04, 2010, 22:01:00

Title: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Digitalis on January 04, 2010, 22:01:00: Can you recommend a shop that I can buy wildflower seeds from, please?

I've looked online but they are quite expensive and only really sell them in 1g or 2g packets. 1g doesn't seem like much! I'd be looking at filling a 6ftx6ft space.

Thanks.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Digeroo on January 04, 2010, 22:08:37: Do you want true wild flowers or a colourful mixed flower display. Lidl sell tubs of mixed flower seeds which last year cost about £1.70. Loads of seeds enough for a huge area, loads of different plants. Lots of colour, but not wild. I don't know when they will have them but they tend to go quite fast.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Toadspawn on January 04, 2010, 23:20:42: Wild flowers thrive in poor soil fertility conditions. If the fertility is too high they will not be able to compete with other plants. The area you plan to use should not be very fertile. It is often better to buy plants and transplant them into an established 'meadow'. There are suppliers of seedling plants.
Wild flower seed may be difficult to establish when sown directly so you might wish to try sowing in modules and transplanting after the plants have developed to reduce the competition. Some wildflower seed will need a cold treatment to break dormancy so often seed will lay on/in the soil overwinter before it begins to germinate. Also fresh seed rather than stored seed may grow better for some species. Wild flower seed is available from many of the seed catalogues.
You need to decide if you want to create a wildflower meadow or if you want to create a flower bed full of annual and perenial wild flowers because the choice of varieties will be important.
Whatever you decide to do enjoy it. A true wildflower meadow is very attractive.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Digeroo on January 05, 2010, 00:35:44: http://www.wildflower.org.uk/department/wildflower_meadow_conservation_mixtures/

This one has 10g packets.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: lewic on January 05, 2010, 08:39:12: Wilkos do a mixed wildflower collection. No idea what all the flowers are (I spotted a crysanthemum) but they were very pretty.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Digitalis on January 05, 2010, 12:51:28: Thanks a lot.

I'm looking for a general wildflower mix.

I did plan to sow direct, but I think I'll jusr use the modules in the greenhouse.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: emmy1978 on January 07, 2010, 12:27:17: Wilkos do a lovely mix with cornflower, poppy, nigella etc.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Mortality on January 07, 2010, 14:56:42: http://www.nickys-nursery.co.uk/seeds/pages/childrens-seeds1.htm

Lots there, I have never bought any though, so I dont know much about them.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Unwashed on January 07, 2010, 18:51:52: I've used Nicky's Seeds and was very happy.

I remember some advice about establishing a wildflower garden is to grow the wild flowers in post and plant out when established, because grass will swamp any direct-sown seedlings. But it's still a challenge unless the garden is quite low in nutrients because grass will still out-compete.
Title: Re: Where To Buy Wildflower Seeds?
Post by: Robert_Brenchley on January 08, 2010, 20:50:55: If you replaced some of the toopsoil with really horrible subsoil, that would be fine for them. Poppies grow like mad on piles of the stuff.