This year has been unique — a harsh reality in so many ways. We’ve been shut in since mid-March. Nesting out of necessity, but I haven’t felt the longing to get out as much as my peers. I’ve been trying to focus my energy on completing projects that have been my queue for months, or in some cases years. My garden has gotten more attention this year than ever before. I also stepped a bit out of my comfort zone and put more focus on seeds this year versus cans from the nursery. Results were mixed, but those plants that were successful are putting on a show.

Growing Plants From Seed

Cosmos

This year I grew Cupcake White Cosmos from Floret in a few planters on the back patio. They have been prolific and I can’t get enough of the papery cupped blooms.

In the front yard near the mailbox, I planted Double Click Cosmos from Botanical Interests. Blooms are now starting to appear in a deep magenta hue. I added a few seeds to our front bed, to no avail.

Zinnias

Last year I had minor luck with zinnia seeds. The only successful plant I had was one Queen Lime Red from Floret seeds. That one plant quickly doubled and tripled itself in size and produced many flowers. This year, I was a bit more successful, but blooms have been slower to appear. I have a few singles in bloom, and most of them are starting to show side shoots.

Dahlias

It’s a mixed bag. I did not dig up my tubers from last year and they did come back, as expected. Unfortunately, I’m losing some of my buds to fungus as they are in the process of opening. We’ve had a raining summer and I’m almost positive that is contributing to the issue. I also planted a mix of seed dahlias from Floret. Some fell victim to our yard guy, but a couple have survived. They’ve been slow to grow, but I’m holding out hope that I may see some buds before fall.

Amaranth

In 2018, my husband and I traveled to Carmel, CA, and while there we stayed at the beautiful Bernardus Lodge. I’ve written about how much the gardens inspired me. My husband fell in love with one flower in particular and has begged me to add it to my front garden ever since. I finally was able to get my hands on seeds from Etsy this year. Elephant Head Amaranth is so unique looking — almost comical, but still very striking and beautiful. Can you guess what message my hubs is trying to send to the neighbors?

Also, I reused a seed tray from last year and got a few of volunteers of globe amaranth. I finally planted them out in the garden a couple of weeks ago and they seem to be doing well. These plants are known to grow large individually, so we’ll see how they perform going forward.

2020 Garden Update - Part I

Growing Plants From Seed

Cosmos

Zinnias

Dahlias

Amaranth