Sowing in autumn gives poppies, corn marigolds, cornflowers and other hardy annuals a head start
I’ve been looking out of our lounge window onto a singed hay meadow all summer, which would be fine if we lived opposite a farm. But what I’m gazing at, rather downheartedly, is my attempt at creating an annual border of grasses and flowers. My vision has not, it seems, been realised.
But being resilient leads you closer to your gardening utopia, so I have already observed, learned and formed a plan B. Essentially, an annual flower’s goal is to grow, flower, seed and die, and if it can do this in an almighty rush, so much the better. I sowed foxtail barley (Hordeum jubatum) and Calendula ‘Sunset Buff’ back in February, the hordeum into modules and the calendula into a seedbed. Both were then transplanted into a sunny border come April. By July I’d got what I wanted – tufts of squirrel grass pinpricked by corn marigolds – it looked lovely but in the heat of August it rapidly scorched away, seeds set, job done. A combination of our light, sandy soil and stunted plants resulted in the briefest of effects. My plan B? Simple - to sow the annuals direct in autumn.
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