Seasonal Tips for April and May - Seeds & Cuttings

One of the best ways to fill a garden with colour and interest is to grow your plants from seed. You can fill a whole border with wonderful plants grown from just a handful of seed packets, sown now. If you’ve never sown from seed, have a go with just one or two packets, it’s easier than you think and you can save yourself pounds. Check out the range of seeds from Unwins to see what’s on offer or visit your local garden centre and invest in a pack or two. Click here for Unwins Top Ten Flower Seeds.

Alternatively have a go at taking cuttings, it’s a great way of bulking up the plants that you already have and making them go that much further.

If you are planning on growing from seed this season then buy some dedicated seed compost. Choose John Innes Seed Sowing Compost with Sure Start. Any old compost will not give you the best results, and when you are investing your time, effort and money into growing from seed, it’s important to give your seedlings the very best possible start. A dedicated seed compost such as John Innes Seed Sowing Compost with Sure Start, is different to normal growing media because it has a much finer texture, increasing the contact with the seed and a perfect level of essential plant nutrients that are specially balanced to provide exactly the right amount of food without damaging the delicate young plant tissue, especially the roots.
Experienced growers start many seeds off early in the season. If you are new to sowing seeds then limit your activities to just a few types of seed and don’t sow the whole packet. Instead sow a small amount of the seed and then use the rest of the packet up gradually over the next few months. Your seed packet will indicate the best time to sow your seeds. Many seeds that are sown early indoors or in a greenhouse do need additional heat to get them started: a heated propagator can provide this. April is a great time to start as the temperature will be several degrees warmer than last month and much more conducive to seed growth.
Seeds that can be started early include: Antirrhinums (snap dragons) and Busy Lizzies. Sow them into a quality seed compost such as Westland John Innes Seed Sowing Compost with Sure Start. It’s designed for delicate seeds and perfect for those seeds that need warmth earlier in the season.
For sowing seed direct into the borders during May, choose hardy annuals such as Nasturtiums, Calendula, Californian Poppies, Sunflowers, Cornflowers, Virginian Stocks, Poppies and wildflower mixtures. Rake the soil to a fine, crumbly surface and draw patterns of shallow drills in the surface, line the base with Multi-Purpose Compost with added John Innes, water gently and then sprinkle the seed thinly on top. Cover over with more compost.
Take softwood cuttings of Fuchsias, Geraniums and other over-wintered plants. Alternatively purchase one or two well-grown plants now and take plenty of cuttings to grow on into flowering plants this season. Use John Innes Seed Sowing Compost with Sure Start.
Half-hardy annuals and half-hardy perennials are not tough enough to withstand the cold and cannot be sown straight into the borders yet. They may be sown in pots on the windowsill, in propagators or in a frost-free greenhouse. Good ones to try are Antirrhinum, Begonia, Coreopsis, Cosmos, Pelargonium, Impatiens, Ipomoea, Marigold, Nicotiana, Petunia and Penstemon.
If you are new to gardening and haven’t yet plucked up the courage to sow plants from seed, then look out for pots of seedlings in the garden centres this month. They are too delicate to plant out into the garden this month, but you can buy a pot full and prick them out into individual pots or modules to grow on, on a sunny windowsill.
Sow annual flower seeds such as Ageratum, Bedding Salvias, Tagetes, Diascia, annual Stocks, Nemesia, Nicotiana, Annual Phlox and bedding Rudbeckia in pots in gentle heat.
Sow Nasturtiums, Alyssum, Clarkia and Lupins in pots in a frost-free greenhouse or on the windowsill.

Other useful tips for April and May: