Need a plant that blooms in two months from seed to flower? Nigella is the answer.
Nigella evokes its common name, love-in-a-mist, with its lovely soft fern-like foliage carrying blue, white or pink flowers on knee-high stems. Its seed capsules are papery and 'horned', a flower-arranger delight.
But be warned, that same seed capsule contains many pepper-grain sized seeds, ready to sprout into bloom in 60 days. Either pick the dead flower heads to prevent reseeding or let it romp in the garden.
If you want continuous blooms from July to October, scatter a packet of seeds every 30 days and watch these beauties perform.
Editor’s note: This is a weekly column presented by the South Delta Garden Club and hosted online every Tuesday on the Optimist website.
