Since the Phacelia can be grown very easily and quickly from seeds, in contrast to other garden plants it is usually not grown early or bought as a young plant, but rather sown directly in a suitable location. If a few things are taken into account when sowing, the flowering period can begin as early as 5 to 7 weeks later, depending on the circumstances.
How to sow phacelia in the garden?
To sow Phacelia, mix the fine seeds with a little sand and sow them directly into the bed from spring to autumn. Just rake in lightly, water well and it will bloom within 5-7 weeks of sowing.
Buy the right seeds
The Phacelia is generally known in this country under the following names, under which it is often sold commercially:
- Beautiful tufts
- Bee Pasture
- Bee Friend
The bee friend, however, is also available in different subspecies such as Phacelia tanacetifolia and Phacelia purshii, each of which differs somewhat in its appearance and height. If you are growing Phacelia from an aesthetic point of view, you should choose a variety that fits the garden well in terms of height and flower color. To use it as a bee pasture, it is not absolutely necessary to use organically produced seeds (€12.00 on Amazon), but these are also available commercially.
Sow once and enjoy repeatedly
The Phacelia has a relatively strong tendency to self-sow if you allow this in your garden. If you are only looking for the soil-improving effects of green manure with Phacelia, you should mow the plants before or during the flowering period and work the slightly dried leaf mass into the soil. But you can also let nature take its course and consciously allow the Phacelia to grow wild in your garden. As long as the seeds were not sown too late in the fall and the seeds on the inflorescences were still able to ripen, you can almost certainly hope for an effortless repeat of the Phacelia's blooms the following year.
Sowing tips
Basically, sowing Phacelia outdoors is possible flexibly from spring to autumn, as long as the seeds are kept evenly moist during the almost two-week germination period. If you mix the relatively fine seeds with a little fine sand, then sowing by hand in the garden is usually a little easier. Immediately after sowing, the seeds should only be lightly raked and watered thoroughly.
Tip
The special thing about the Phacelia as an ornamental plant is its rapid flowering in less than two months after sowing. Take advantage of this flexibility by sowing the Phacelia from the summer onwards as a gap filler in beds with spring and early summer bloomers such as the Bleeding Heart.
