On the bare ground under the Minarette apple trees I scattered a packet of wildflower seeds. Now there are two Marigolds, some shoots of Dill or Fennel, a couple of Dandelion and Groundsel plants and these pretty Phacelia.
The Groundsel and Dandelions might well have appeared anyway, Dill/Fennel are not what I'd call wild flowers and the Phacelia are usually a plant sown as green manure...................................
A valuable, quick growing, green manure
Good in dry soils, but suitable for all soil types
Attractive foliage quickly smothers weeds
If left to flower will attract bees and other beneficial insects
Not a swathe of old fashioned wild flowers then but interesting all the same.
Back Tomorrow
Sue
Still pretty! There are several varieties in my wildflower mix that I wouldn't have chosen myself but the pollinators seem happy enough. I think I will have to look at the packet more carefully next year. X
ReplyDeleteI'm sure the picture on the packet was a field of different colours - don't have the packet now of course
Delete‘A flower that grows in the wild’….open to interpretation isn’t it. If all of those can be found growing in the wild (not planted by someone) we’re unable to suggest false advertising. Were there any plant descriptions on the packet or just the generic wording ‘wildflowers’?
ReplyDeleteI’d feel a bit hard done by as well.
I can't remember what the packet said - perhaps Flowers for Bees or something similar which is possibly true
DeleteOne plant of Phacelia may not be that impressive, we have a couple of fields of it nearby and it is a fabulous colour and smothered in Bees. If you have some poppy heads you could split and broadcast those, I get giant teasels here as well, they are impressive and attract lots of insects. Maybe the seed company’s are jumping on the wild flower bandwagon and sending any old rubbish out, just collect your own seed when out for a walk, that’s not illegal. Sarah Browne.
ReplyDeleteI've only seen a field of Phacelia once - an amazing sight. We often get fields of Linseed which is a brilliant blue
DeletePhacelia is lovely in bloom in fields but wouldn’t really call any of them wildflowers.
ReplyDeleteNo me neither - but at least the bees like the Phacelia
DeleteI had a birthday card impregnated with wildflower seeds, planted them but haven't seen the result yet. The phacelia is very pretty though.
ReplyDeleteHope you get to see something soon
DeleteIt looks really very pretty and a nice surprise. xx
ReplyDeleteBetter than bare ground
DeleteOur local farmer plants a variety of phacelia in his 'set aside'. Always a mass of bees and butterflies, which is lovely to see
ReplyDeleteThat's a good use of set aside land
Deletefor the price of a packet of seeds I think they are lovely. Any kind of flower for the bees and butterflies.
ReplyDeleteCathy
Lots of other things here are suffering in the dry weather but the Phacelia are doing well
DeleteGreen manure is so beneficial. The purple flower is lovely too. I like to encourage wild flowers and love seeing them appear in the most unexpected places. I suspect the purple flower will show up in in many places on your property.
ReplyDeleteIt willbe good to add to the compost bin at the end of the season too
DeleteIt sounds so easy growing wild flower seeds but whenever I've tried as soon as the first shoots come through they are eaten by slugs or snails!
ReplyDeleteAlison in Wales x
Colin tried several times sowing them properly in seed trays etc but never a lot of luck
DeleteMaybe not quite what your were expecting but still very pretty. I used to grow Phacelia in the dormant beds back in Wales, it looked brilliant from the road a band of blue against the green of the trees behind it.
ReplyDeleteIT must have looked lovely. I love it when farmers grow a field of Linseed around here - a whole sea of blue
DeleteI am a volunteer gardener for the pollinator garden at our post office in town. We grow dill and fennel for the monarch butterflies lay their eggs on the foliage so the caterpillars can eat the foliage when they hatch. We have great success as our group leader collects the pupates and raises them in her own enclosures before releasing them when they hatch. Right now we thrilled to have nine preying mantis that have hatched out there and are busy keeping the garden pest free. Our garden has won state and regional awards for its beauty and purpose.
ReplyDeleteWell done for such good results with your garden project. Monarch butterflies don't get as far as the UK but I've read about their migration
DeleteI bought a packet of those. I should have planted them here -- I fear they'll be dead when I return home.
ReplyDeleteI like the sound of all the Phacelia is good for. Green manure - does that mean when the season is over you can just dig it in?
ReplyDeleteYes digging it in is the norm. It's often used by gardeners on empty areas and sometimes by farmers to add a bit of nutrients to poor soil. Lots of things are used as green manure. I'll be pulling it up and adding to the compost bins as its under some small apple treesand I wouldn't want to disturb their roots
DeleteOnce again, I've been encouraged to make a purchase by something you've written about; this week it's Phacelia seeds! The soil here is dry and lifeless - no worms or beetles are ever seen; I think the previous owner stuffed it so full of plants, shrubs & trees, but didn't enrich it in any way. I have removed a very high conifer hedge along the frontage and another one in the back garden, so this natural manure can only help to put goodness back.
ReplyDeleteLovely! I put down some wildflower mix, but I think husband keeps mowing it down not giving it a chance to grow!
ReplyDelete