Howdy Sunshine Everlasting Bouquet Seed Mix - Limited Edition Embellishments 25th Anniversary - Free Shipping.
To celebrate the 25th Anniversary of my studio's collaboration with Willows, a lifestyle boutique, I've hand selected a seed mix of everlasting flowers for drying. The mix includes celosia, 3 types of amaranth, creamy and bright varieties of strawflower, lunaria and bread seed poppy pods. Price includes shipping via USPS.
- Amaranth has gorgeous cascading flower/seeds that resemble chenille. They are a favorite of birds if allowed to go to seed. Amaranth leaves are edible, and can be used like spinach. The chenille blossoms will be shorter on the dark green leafed with dark pink blooms variety. The peach and burgundy variety can grow blooms that cascade down well into the 18"-24" inch zone. Very dramatic blossoms for sure.
- Stawflower is exactly how it sounds. The blooms once dried are crispy like a dried piece of straw. They look and feel like a colored parchment paper. The mix has both wonderful neutrals and beautiful brights. You'll enjoy these. They are great drieds for crafting.
- Bread Seed Poppies will reward you with no fuss blooms in shades of pale pink to lavender. Such an unexpected color in the tall summer border. Once the petals fall the remaining pods will mature into a great dried element. Even more rewarding will be the abundance of seeds they produce that you can save and scatter the next year. Don't worry they are not invasive, just happy to show off. If you do not have a green thumb, these guys won't care. They are super easy going.
- Celosia is a type of Amaranth, has edible leaves and oddly enough is also close in relation to Quinoa. These are not breed for their seed taste, so I'd pass on eating a bowl of them. Their blooms look like flickering flames of color. They will range from pale blush to burgundy and peach. Some plants will be stockier and full and some may be leggy, they are quite independent in their ways.
- Lunaria is often called money plant, as the mature seed pods, once spent leave behind stems of iridescent coin shaped delights, perfect for dried arrangements. While grown for those coins, the lunaria plant and flowers are both very attractive. They bloom in white, violets and lavenders.
PLANTING INSTRUCTIONS:
This is a tall mix of everlasting flowers. They would be great for the back of the sunny border or planted scattered in a sunny open area. They'll grow between 30-48 inches in height, with exception the lunaria, which will hover right below that during bloom. All of these plants are annuals with exception the lunaria which can also be a biennial, growing one year and blooming the next.
Plant the mix preferably in full sun. The poppies and lunaria won't mind a little shade, but the others will be unhappy. None of these plants like their seeds buried, so just rough up your soil, rake it fairly smooth and sprinkle the seeds. Then pat down the soil to ensure contact between the seeds and the soil. Keep the soil moist by misting. Most of them will germinate between 7-12 days with Lunaria following up within 14 or so days.
All of the flowers in the mix are no fuss. The only care they may need is some staking if the amaranth blooms are profuse, or if mid summer winds start to knock down the strawflower stems.
Drying directions for each plant varies and I'd recommend reading up on it as some techniques might work better for you than others.
Fertilizing is not necessary, although it will encourage fuller blossoms on the amaranth and strawflower.
These varieties are not inclined to attract pests. You may find a slug enjoying the amaranth and celosia leaves but they will be profuse, so sharing is a matter of choice.
