Seeds that I am starting this Year

I just finished ordering too many seeds for me to handle this year, but I will give them all a shot. Most of these are native annuals or biennials and many are native to Massachusetts, where I am located. I thought I would share my list with you all.

Native to Massachusetts:

Adlumia fungosa (Alleghany vine, biennial, shown above), Aureolaria pedicularia (Fernleaf yellow false foxglove, annual), Bidens coronata (Crowned beggar’s ticks, annual), Corydalis sempervirens (Rock harlequin) , Hedeoma pulegiodes (American pennyroyal, annual), Hypoxis hirsuta (Eastern yellow star grass, perennial), Polygala sanguinia (Purple milkwort, annual), Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium (Sweet everlasting, annual).

Some of these plants will be tricky to start and use. As ‘wild’ plants they are adapted to thrive in specific environments. I hope to learn more about their requirements and how well they adapt to a residential garden. For example, Aureolaria pedicularia is parasitic on oaks and possibly ericaceous species; the Corydalis, Polygala and Pseudognaphalium are found on thin or depleted soils and may not do well in the relatively enriched soils found in most gardens. I’ve had good success with the Adlumia – these are seeds from a previous year’s plants.

Native to New England:

In addition to the seeds above I am trying these that are native to other parts of New England:  Monarda punctata (spotted bee balm, biennial; photo on left taken at Mount Auburn Cemetery wildflower meadow) and Rudbeckia triloba (brown-eyed Susan, biennial).

This Rudbeckia grows more as a bush with smaller, 'softer'-looking flowers than the more common Black-eyed Susan (R. hirta).

Native to other parts of North America:
Agastache aurantiaca ‘Navaho Sunset’, photo to right (Golden hyssop, perennial), Cleome serrulata (Rocky Mountain Bee Plant, annual), Eschscholzia californica (California poppy, annual/tender perennial), Euphorbia marginata ‘Summer Icicle’ (Snow-on-the-Mountain, annual), Gallardia pulchella (Annual blanket flower, annual), Phacelia tanacetifolia (Lacy phacelia, annual), Phlox drummundii (Drummond phlox – straight species, annual), and Salvia coccinea (Texas sage, annual/tender perennial).

I got the Phlox and Gaillardia on a visit to the Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, TX.  (Well worth a visit whenever you are in that part of the country!)  These southwestern and western native plants are more decorative and may have a place in a home garden. They would be out of place in a meadow planting in the Northeast (or anywhere outside of their native ranges).