Saturday, June 1, 2019

Snapdragons


Last spring -- as in, April of 2018 -- I planted some snapdragon seeds. I put some of them straight into the garden and some in two pots on our patio.

The ones in the garden didn't do much -- I only got a few sprouts, which were promptly buried in a cascade of nasturtiums planted nearby. The ones in the pots sprouted, but the sprouts stayed tiny and anemic-looking, and none of them ever bloomed.


In fact, I began to doubt that the sprouts even were snapdragons. I wondered if they were merely weeds. Maybe none of those seeds grew at all?

I left them over the winter, and this spring I almost threw the potted ones away. I went so far as to put the root ball into the garden waste bag on the street. But I had a change of heart and put the plants back in their pot, just to see what they would do, given another summer.

Lo and behold, they have grown and some of them have bloomed.


I'm not sure why it took two years before they produced flowers, and even now I wouldn't say they're thriving. Some of them are only a few inches tall. In retrospect I didn't plant them very carefully -- I just scattered the seeds willy-nilly and didn't thin the seedlings at all. I think some of them have struggled to find enough space to grow.

But at least we have flowers -- FINALLY!
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12 comments:

  1. Yorkshire PuddingJune 1, 2019 at 9:43 AM

    As a child I loved to see bees finding their way inside snapdragons for pollination purposes. It wasn't the easiest manoeuvre (American: maneuver/ Trump American: mAnoovure)

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  2. DavidJune 1, 2019 at 12:03 PM

    What gorgeous flowers! As one who lives in a sub-tropical part of Australia, where it is warm all year round, we don't see snapdragons (or any other cold-climate flowers). Your photos are superb, as always. Thank you.

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  3. Ms. MoonJune 1, 2019 at 2:42 PM

    Pretty little blossoms! Glad you didn't throw them away. They must have whispered to you somehow.

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  4. The BugJune 1, 2019 at 2:44 PM

    I love snapdragons! We get surprise flowers every year. This year the wildflower bed is full of things that weren't there last year. And we had a volunteer petunia that is THRIVING.

    P.S. Manoovure - hahaha!

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  5. AnonymousJune 1, 2019 at 2:52 PM

    I love your change of heart, rescuing those snapdragons from the garden waste bag. They responded with blooming beauty.

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  6. ellen abbottJune 1, 2019 at 3:36 PM

    your patience paid off! but maybe it took so long because they weren't getting enough sun.

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  7. eJune 1, 2019 at 3:45 PM

    So glad you saved these. they are gorgeous.

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  8. Linda SueJune 1, 2019 at 4:24 PM

    Snap dragons have a great sense of humor! As a child I would do ventriloquism acts with them until they were tired or dead. They grew abundantly in our bad soil , too much sun, of Wyo. Maybe they like a more harsh environment? Yours are so pretty, plump and healthy! You must be doing something right.

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  9. jenny_oJune 1, 2019 at 8:32 PM

    I grew snapdragons two years ago because they were the only thing in abundance at sale prices (the end of transplanting season, which is often when I get around to gardening due to being busy at work). They were great bloomers and I was sorry to see the frost take them in the fall. I was thinking I might get more this year and you've reinforced that thinking.

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  10. CatalystJune 1, 2019 at 10:18 PM

    They certainly seem to have "snapped" back.

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  11. gzJune 1, 2019 at 10:34 PM

    I prefer snapdragon to antirrhinum..but the latter does mean like a nose....
    They are lovey flowers

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  12. Steve ReedJune 2, 2019 at 7:20 AM

    YP: Trumpians would never use the word "maneuver."

    David: We used to grow snapdragons in Florida, but it may have been early in the year -- as opposed to summer. Flowers in Florida in the summer just get roasted. So I know what you mean!

    Ms Moon: I think they did! I remember being at work, at my desk, and thinking, "I really SHOULD keep those plants just one more year!" And then I went home and salvaged them. They were sending me telepathic messages!

    Bug: Isn't it fun to see what comes up every year? Plants are amazing.

    Robin: It was definitely the right call!

    Ellen: They were in full sun. I think they're too close together. I've learned something about the spacing of seeds!

    E: Aren't they a nice surprise?

    Linda Sue: I'm impressed that they would do well in Wyoming. Apparently they are pretty tough plants, despite their delicate appearance. Ours lasted the winter in pots, even in occasionally sub-freezing temperatures.

    Jenny-O: They do sometimes seed themselves, and in more moderate climates the plants can even last the winter. I think you're probably too cold for that, though.

    Catalyst: Good one! I wish I'd thought of it!

    GZ: Antirrhinum sounds so...medical.

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