Seeds - Part 5: Planting your seedlings outside

Seeds - Part 5: Planting Your Seedlings Outside

Planting Out the Wallflowers

If you're growing on a commercial scale, it's important for your beds to be functional and orderly so that weeding, sowing and watering are simple.

Creating paths between your beds means that your crops and flowers will be easy to access and won't get squashed or broken by you reaching for the ones further away.

Laying down a line when planting out will give you a good guide for creating the right path and will help to keep your beds even and straight.

How to Plant Out Wallflowers:

1. Plant out your wallflowers in June or July after an April sowing, so they will then flower the following year.

1. Lay your plants out in the position you wish to plant them. Leave 20 cm between plants to give them room to spread and room for you to weed.

1. Bury your plant to a good depth, ensuring that a few centimetres of the stem are underground too. This will help them grow strong and prevent them from becoming too 'leggy'. Ideally, you want your plants to stand up straight.

1. Firm the plants in and smooth over the ground, removing any hiding places for slugs and snails.

The Importance of Spacing

Spacing is very important when growing flowers and crops, as it ensures that adequate nutrition is available for the plants concerned.

The back of the seed packet will usually give you an idea about the spacing required by that particular plant, but you can also look at pictures online or in books to get an idea about the general spread and growing habit of a plant.

Watering

Once your plants are in the ground, slowly and gently water them in with a 'rose head' on your watering can. Make sure to give them a good soaking to help them bed in.

Only water along the line of the plants, so that you don't waste any water.