[Even Gardening Beginners Are Welcome!] Flowers Grown from Seeds Sown in Spring
Spring is a season when all kinds of flowers catch your eye, and that alone makes your heart feel light and fluffy, doesn’t it?
You often see houses with beautifully kept eaves overflowing with flowers, but for gardening beginners, it can feel a bit intimidating.
So in this article, we’ll introduce flowers that are recommended for beginners to sow in spring and grow from seed.
Buying seedlings and planting them is the quickest route, but many people still want to try growing from seed.
Above all, starting from seed is inexpensive, and the joy when they grow and bloom is on a whole different level.
If you’re a beginner, be sure to try growing these recommended varieties!
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[Even Gardening Beginners Are Welcome!] Flowers Grown From Seeds Sown in Spring (21–30)
Coleus
Let me introduce Coleus, a member of the mint family grown mainly as a foliage plant for its colorful leaves.
It’s an appealing plant with great variety, featuring leaves that can be multicolored—mixes of green, red, pink, and white—or solid in a single hue.
When sowing seeds, do not cover them with potting mix; instead, provide light and keep the environment from drying out.
Until germination evens out, bottom watering works well.
After sprouting and until 2–3 true leaves appear, water gently with a mist.
Once 2–3 true leaves have developed, transplant into your preferred small pot or container.
Pentas
Let me introduce Pentas, an evergreen shrub in the Rubiaceae family that produces adorable star-shaped flowers.
The blooms come in a range of colors, including red, pink, white, and purple.
It’s best grown in well-draining potting soil.
If planting multiple specimens in the ground, leave about 30 centimeters (12 inches) between each plant.
For watering, make sure to water thoroughly when the soil has dried out.
Because it has a long blooming period, feeding it regularly will help it grow vigorously.
To enjoy continuous flowering, be sure to deadhead spent blooms.
canterbury bell
Here’s how to grow bellflowers, which have very cute cup-shaped blooms.
Because the flowers are cup-shaped, avoid watering from above, as it will make the blooms deteriorate quickly.
Bellflowers love sunlight, so place them where they get plenty of sun, and water only after the soil has dried out thoroughly.
If you fertilize about three times a month, they will keep blooming for a long time.
To get them to bloom again, it’s said that cutting the stems back near the base can encourage new flowers.
They’re easy to grow even for beginners, so if you’re interested, give them a try.
sensitive plant
Mimosa pudica, often used for elementary school science projects, is a plant hugely popular with children thanks to its unique traits.
It’s said to have arrived in Japan from the Netherlands during the Edo period, so it’s still relatively new to Japanese soil.
Because it prefers well-drained soil, mix in a generous amount of small-grain akadama when preparing the potting mix.
It tolerates heat well but is quite weak against the cold.
If the soil dries out, it becomes prone to spider mites—its arch-enemy—so be sure to water thoroughly every day in summer.
You can also collect seeds after it flowers, making it easy to propagate!
Caryopteris (Bluebeard)
Let me introduce you to the flower known as Dan-giku or Caryopteris, which is characterized by its blossoms opening gradually from the bottom upward.
If you apply a diluted liquid fertilizer during its growing season, from May to September, it should thrive.
It prefers sunny locations and isn’t too picky about other conditions, which makes it easy to grow.
Water when the soil has dried out to prevent it from becoming too dry.
Plants in the ground don’t need repotting, but for potted plants, repot into a slightly larger pot before the roots become cramped.
Flannel flower
Introducing the flannel flower, an easy plant for beginners! Flannel flowers are adorable, featuring soft, carpet-like white blooms.
This video also explains in detail how to grow them.
Key points include their preference for sunny locations and the need for well-draining soil.
It also covers pruning tips and precautions for care, so even beginners can grow them with confidence.
Learn the tricks for getting beautiful blossoms while discovering the charm of the flannel flower.
Ageratum
Ageratum is a flower also known as cuckoo thistle.
It blooms in the distinctive thistle style, with countless tiny petals clustered together.
It’s said to start growing when temperatures rise above 10°C and begin to wither below 10°C, so in warm regions you can enjoy its flowers from early spring to late autumn.
Because it’s sensitive to humidity, a potted plant that can be moved indoors during the rainy season is preferable.
It likes well-draining soil.
Prepare soil by mixing mainly akadama soil with leaf mold and river sand.
Be careful not to overwater or overfertilize.