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| My elderly mother bought a packet of Texas Bluebonnet seeds at the store and asked me to plant them for her in her yard in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. I'm an experienced gardener but have never grown bluebonnets and from what I understand they are not the easiest plants to grow. The packet said they are annuals and that they should be planted from March-June in Virginia. I read up a little about bluebonnets on the internet and apparently they are normally planted in the fall or early winter in Texas. I also read that they have low/slow germination without assistance. Wikipedia says they are biennials rather than annuals. So I chipped the edge of the seeds, soaked them in water for a few hours and then put them in a ziploc bag with a damp paper towel. Most all of the seeds germinated in just a few days so I immediately planted them outside a few days ago (about May 6th) and they are starting to come up. So I'm wondering what to expect. Will they actually bloom this year or are they really biennials that won't bloom until next year. (Do they need vernalization to bloom?) Or will they try and struggle to bloom during the peak of our summer here? Would it be better to plant them in the fall here? Thanks for any tips! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| They are biennial only in the fact that their growing period crosses Dec/Jan. They're a winter annual in their native environment. They peter out in the heat quite quickly. I seriously doubt you'll ever see blooms, but I do wish you luck. They're so popular if they could be grown other places, they would be. |
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- Posted by steve22802 7a VA (My Page) on Mon, May 12, 14 at 22:29
| Thanks dbarron. I've told mom not to get her hopes up. They are coming up from the ground now so at least we will have some experimental plants to watch. I'm afraid that they will not be too happy with our hot summers. Perhaps it would have been better to plant them earlier in the spring. I'll try to report back what happens. |
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| Yes, do, if someone ever figures out a way, that doesn't involve putting ice cubes on the plants every day...lol, I want to know about it! |
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