Since the phacelia can be grown from seed very easily and quickly, in contrast to other garden plants, it is usually not preferred or bought as a young plant, but sown directly in a suitable location. If a few things are taken care of when sowing, flowering can start as early as 5 to 7 weeks later, depending on the circumstances.
The Phacelia tends to self-seed
Buy the right seeds
The Phacelia is basically also known in this country under the following names, under which it is often sold commercially:
- tuft beautiful
- bee pasture
- bee friend
The bee friend, on the other hand, is also available in various subspecies such as Phacelia tanacetifolia and Phacelia purshii, which differ somewhat in their appearance and growth height. If your phacelia cultivation is done from an aesthetic point of view, you should choose a variety that suits the garden well in terms of height and flower color. For use as bee pasture, it is not absolutely necessary to use organically produced seed, but this is also available commercially.
Sow once and enjoy repeatedly
The Phacelia has a relatively strong tendency to self-seed if you allow it in your garden. If you are only interested in the soil-improving effects of a green manure with phacelia, you should mow the plants before or during the flowering period and work the slightly dried leaves into the soil. But you can also let nature take its course and consciously allow the phacelia to grow wild in your garden. If the seed was not sown too late in autumn and the seeds on the inflorescences were still able to ripen, you can almost certainly hope for an effortless repeat of the Phacelia's blooms in the following year.
Tips for sowing
Basically, the sowing of the Phacelia outdoors is possible flexibly from spring to autumn, as long as the seeds are kept evenly moist during the almost two-week germination period. If you mix the relatively fine seed with some fine sand, then sowing by hand in the garden is usually a little easier. Immediately after sowing, the seeds should only be lightly raked in and watered extensively.
tips
What is special about the phacelia as an ornamental plant is its rapid flowering in less than two months after sowing. Take advantage of this flexibility by sowing the Phacelia from summer on as a gap filler in beds with spring and early summer flowering plants such as the Bleeding Heart.