Last weekend, Nick took me on an outing to the Garden Centre. Naturally, I was drawn to all the bright colours, different shapes and sizes of the trees and flowers. He was on the look out for a tree to add to his bonsai collection, and I was there to find whatever caught my eye. To avoid over committing to a garden project, I left with a small purchase: a bag of potting soil and a pack of sunflower seeds (no, not the snacking kind). After receiving an email from one of my best friends, who bragged about her recently sprouted seeds, I wanted to try and see if I could grow some myself!
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| My Sunflower Seed Experiment |
Considering I have no experience with a project such as this, I simply followed the instructions on the back of the seed package. Like my best friend, I used an egg carton to house my seeds while I try to sprout them. Now, I wait and watch for the seeds grow as they sit in the window sill. Once sprouted, I can then transfer them into my backyard. I didn’t just choose the usual Sunflower. Instead, I specifically picked the Sunflower Tournesol Earthwalker variety because of their beautiful colour and they are ideal as cut flowers. I liked the idea of snipping off the flowers to enjoy in my home.
As of late, I have been noticing a trend of DIY flower vases created from ready made vessels (Yay for reusing!). I love having fresh flowers in the house, never mind growing them! So if when my sunflowers are ready for display, I will proudly show off my new found talent in a similar vase to the ones below. Am I getting too far ahead of myself? Nah.
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Seeds don't need any sunlight at all during the germination phase, but once they sprout and start growing up and developing leaves a lot of sunlight is essential. If your little flower sprouts start to get "too leggy" (tall and spindly) it likely means they aren't in a sunny enough spot. Also, when it comes time to put them outside, don't just put them out there all of a sudden one day… they can be shocked by the cold, so you have to transfer them slowly giving a little more time in the cooler/windy outdoors over about a week.
Great advice Carly! The things I don't know about gardening…you are a book of knowledge!
I appreciate the "cold shock" tip. I will have to figure out the best way to transfer them…maybe open the window up and allow them to feel the breeze when they are sprouted.
Thanks for the feedback!
I love the hanging jars and bottles for planters – too cute. Reminds me of some of the stuff I posted about from a trip to a Nicaragua (http://passport2design.com/garden-inspiration-from-nicaragua/).
By the way, I am coming over for some yummy sunflower seeds once they grow!
*Tania @ Passport2Design.com