Chris's Weblog – City Chickens

My diary from 2006

Tag Archive: Borage

Chris's Weblog - City Chickens > Borage

Sowing Seeds April 24th 2024

April 24, 2024 Garden , , , , ,

Larkspur Hyacinth (Delphinium)

Delphinium are a favourite in cottage gardens. Both perennial and annual varieties are available. The common name is larkspur. They are happiest in full sun and may need staking as they grow very tall. I have never done this however and have never had a spire snap off. They prefer a rich soil which doesn’t dry out or become waterlogged.

This morning I have sown seeds of Larkspur Hyacinth both indoors in modules and outside. This variety is an annual so I shall need to bear in mind to let one late spire go to seed to collect for next year. Hyacinth is a mixture of pink, white and red if I remember correctly. The seeds I have are old now and so I’m just going for it and crossing my fingers for some success. I used to have a beautiful deep blue variety in my red white and blue pot but I fear they are long gone. I purchased these seeds a few years ago from Country Garden www.countrygardenuk.com A brilliant seed company with a wealth of information about happy gardening and amazing flower photography.

Young plants are available out there and these can be planted out in Spring after the risk of frost has passed.

Once established and in full flower cut back faded flower spikes to small flowering side shoots to encourage a second flush of flowers. In autumn cut down all growth to ground level after it has died back.

Divide overcrowded plants every 3 to 4 years as new growth begins in spring, lifting the plants and dividing them into smaller clumps.

Balsam Dwarf Bush Mixed

These are seeds that I have had success with before. They were purchased from Seekay Horticultural Supplies in 2017. Yes. They are old. I have sown them in a plastic container with drainage holes and hey presto over a dozen seedlings have popped through. I am very pleased as I remember the plants being quite substantial although they are called dwarf. I shall grow them on now and by the summer hopefully have a good show of flowers.

Balsam Dwarf Mix

Borage – Star Flower

I’ve had less success with the old Borage seeds but if I can grow on the four seedlings that have popped through I shall get four enormous plants and be able to collect seeds at the end of the growing season. I love Borage. It has a wonderful blue colour and is a magnet to bees and other pollenating insects. Commonly called Star Flower it is useful to vegetable growers and our allotment is where I first grew this strong attractive plant. Update 29th April – Two healthy seedlings potted on today.

Borage – Borago officinalis – Star Flower

February 10, 2017 Allotments, Garden , , , ,

I have grown this interesting plant before when we first took on the allotment. I sowed Borage seeds directly into the end of the bean trench and it grew and grew and grew. Personally I liked it so I have bought new seeds from Higgledy. Rob didn’t like it as it tried to take over the allotment. It is a big plant that attracts bees and other pollinators which is why I think it should have a place in both the garden and the allotment. It does need managing though. Direct sow into the ground in mid April and through May. You can also sow in August for flowers the next spring. It’s 26th April and I am sowing some Borage seed in the side garden today.

Borage, also known as a starflower, is an annual herb in the flowering plant family Boraginaceae. It is native to the Mediterranean region and has naturalized in many other locales. It grows satisfactorily in gardens in the UK climate, remaining in the garden from year to year by self-seeding. The leaves are edible and the plant is grown in gardens for that purpose in some parts of Europe. The plant is also commercially cultivated for borage seed oil extracted from its seeds. Starflower Oil is taken from the Borage officinalis seeds,

 

 

Nadine and The Star Flower

May 13, 2007 Allotments

nadineborage star flower

Rob planted the 23 Nadine potatoes given to us by Wayne’s dad. They were shop bought potatoes that had sprouted so we are keeping our fingers crossed that they are ok. He has put them in Keith’s old bean trench along the bottom of plot 18.

Whilst watering in the lean to I noticed that something had been nibbling at the aubergine seedlings so I have moved them and the peppers out into the small plastic greenhouse on a high shelf. I did find rather a healthy looking snail in there. Almost all of the tomatoes have been potted on now and the left hand side of the lean to is quite full. All this heavy rain had shown us how leaky the roof is in the lean to so we shall have to put that right soon. We shall need to harvest the lettuce from the right hand bed as the cucumbers are almost ready to go into their large pots and that was where I wanted to put them.

I sowed a few seeds of Borage, (Borago officinalis) the star flower, into small terracotta pots.

Borage is a hardy annual and is essentially a wild flower. Once established it will self seed and pop up year after year. Borage is a useful companion plant to strawberries and tomatoes as a natural form of pest control. It is also highly attractive to blackfly and can be planted as a decoy close to fruit and vegetables. https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A18718824

coriander

I sowed a row of Lemon Coriander seeds in the fourth quarter of the salad bed. Lemon Coriander leaves have a lemon fragrance and flavour. They can be used as a garnish in a salad or in stir fry.