Snapdragons are among the most attractive flowering plants that have been native to our gardens for several hundred years. They are easy to care for, can be grown on your own and bloom beautifully in the first year after planting.
How do I grow snapdragons correctly?
To prefer snapdragons, sow the seeds from February in seed pots with potting soil, cover them lightly and keep them moist. Place them bright and warm (20 degrees) and prick the seedlings into their own pots as soon as they have developed the second pair of leaves.
Seed procurement
Snapdragon seeds are available in any well-stocked gardening store. If you want perennial plants, you should make sure to purchase seeds for “real” snapdragons when purchasing. Although F1 hybrids bloom very attractively and grow beautifully bushy, they have exhausted themselves after a year and are therefore not overwintered.
Alternatively, you can harvest seeds from your own snapdragon perennials. Here too, these are “real” snapdragons because they produce hybrid seeds, but these are often not capable of germinating.
The sowing
You can grow snapdragons indoors from February onwards. Self-harvested seeds require a cold stimulus and must be stratified. Mix the seeds with a little sand and place them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for a few weeks. The temperature here should be around four degrees (measure!).
When sowing, proceed as follows:
- Fill the growing pot with special growing soil (€6.00 on Amazon).
- Sprinkle seeds and do not cover them at all or cover them lightly with substrate (light germinator).
- Carefully moisten the soil with a sprayer. The seeds must not be washed away.
- Place in a bright but not full sun spot on the windowsill.
- The optimal germination temperature is around twenty degrees.
- To promote rapid germination, you can put a hood or transparent film over the cultivation container.
Under these conditions, the seeds often germinate after just six days. Sometimes the snapdragon takes a lot more time, so don't lose your patience. Unless mold forms or rot destroys the seeds, the first cotyledons may only appear after three weeks.
The isolation
As soon as the seedlings have formed the second pair of leaves, they are pricked out. Each snapdragon now gets its own pot in which the plant can develop vigorously.
Fill small flower pots with substrate and press a hole. Carefully lift the plants out of the growing pots so that the small root balls are damaged as little as possible. Carefully insert the snapdragons, water and place the pots back in a warm and bright place.
Tip
Do not overwater the cultivation pots. Rot is the most common reason for seeds not germinating. The root ball should be kept moist but not dripping wet.
