Native plants and wildflowers are much more adaptable than non-native species, and they often don’t need supplemental watering once they’re established. On top of that, native wildflowers are up to 4 times more attractive to pollinators than non-native species, and they’re typically more resistant to pests and diseases as well. With all those perks, it’s no surprise that gardeners today are increasingly interested in growing wildflowers.
Wildflowers can sometimes be purchased at local plant nurseries but started plants can get pricy fast. A better way to get your hands on lots of native wildflowers is to grow your own plants from seed. But how exactly do you plant wildflower seeds?
In this guide, we’ll teach you three simple wildflower planting methods, as well as some top tips for increasing seed germination rates and preparing your garden for wildflowers. Once you try growing wildflowers from scratch, we think you’ll be as much in love with wildflowers as we are!
Jump to:
- Where to plant native plants and wildflower seeds
- How to prepare your soil for wildflowers
- 3 Techniques for Planting Wildflowers and Native Plant Seeds
- Planting wildflower seeds in fall.
- Planting wildflower seeds in spring.
- Planting wildflower seeds with seed balls.
- Caring for wildflowers and native plants
- What wildflowers should I grow?
- Frequently asked questions
- What month is best to plant wildflower seeds?
- Will wildflowers come back every year?
- Should I soak wildflower seeds before planting?
- Does wildflower mean native?
- What classifies a flower as a wildflower?
- What is the most common wildflower?
- Summary
Where to plant native plants and wildflower seeds
Wildflowers can be started in pots, or they can be directly sown in your garden beds. But you’ll need to choose an appropriate growing location before you start planting!
If you’re starting wildflowers indoors, seedling trays and peat pots can work quite well, while wildflowers started outdoors in pots can either be grown in upcycled milk jugs or old plastic nursery pots.
However, if you’re more interested in directly sowing your wildflowers into your garden beds in either spring or fall, you’ll want to select a growing location that receives at least 6 to 8 hours of bright light daily. Most wildflowers will flower more abundantly if they receive lots of sun, but these easygoing plants don’t require rich soil, and they can actually adapt to gardens with lower-quality, sandy, or clay-rich earth. Any location you choose should also be well-draining unless you’re growing wildflowers that are well-adapted to boggy conditions.
How to prepare your soil for wildflowers
Before planting wildflowers outdoors in your garden, you’ll want to prep your flower beds by raking back the mulch and removing any weeds that you see. You can aerate the soil if you want to and rake in a small bit of compost, too, but avoid adding too much compost, as this can actually be detrimental to the growth of wildflowers!
Wildflowers are incredibly adaptable plants, and they will grow in poor soils. Adding too many nutrients to wildflower gardens can cause plants to grow too fast, and this often results in weak and droopy stems. A bit of compost won’t hurt wildflowers but don’t overdo it. If you have extra compost on hand, save it for your vegetable garden and nutrient-hungry ornamental plants.
3 Techniques for Planting Wildflowers and Native Plant Seeds
When it comes to planting wildflower seeds, you have a couple of options. You can either start seeds outdoors or indoors, and you can sow seeds individually by hand, or you can sow them in bulk. What planting method you choose will be informed by your growing location and how much soil you’d like to cover with wildflowers!
In general, the best time to plant flowers is in the fall, although wildflowers can also be planted in spring with a bit of extra attention. Summer planting can work, too, but this isn’t ideal, as the extreme heat of summer can make it difficult for seedlings to germinate.
Wildflowers typically germinate best with autumn planting, as many native wildflowers require a period of cold for them to germinate. When seeds are planted in spring, this “cold snap” can be replicated with your fridge, but if you plant seeds in autumn, they will be naturally exposed to the cold outdoor temperatures, and you won’t have to stratify the seeds yourself. Below, we’ll explore both indoor and outdoor planting options (as well as how to plant wildflower seeds with seed balls) so you can determine what planting method is most appropriate for you and your garden.
Planting wildflower seeds in fall.
Planting wildflower seeds in autumn is usually the easiest option, but sowing seeds at the right time is key. In areas with mild winters, wildflower seeds can be planted in early to mid-fall; however, if you live in a spot where winters get cold, you’ll want to sow seeds after a hard frost or two. Sowing seeds after the ground has frozen will reduce the chances that seeds will rot in excess moisture, and it will also reduce the amount of seeds you lose to foraging birds and other wildlife.
To plant seeds in autumn, prepare your soil before the ground freezes by raking away autumn leaves and other plant debris and removing any weeds that you see. If you want to, you can also rake a light application of compost into your planting area, but don’t use too much compost!
When you’re ready to plant, wildflower seeds can either be sown individually in your prepared growing location, or you can mix seeds with sand and broadcast spread them over a larger area. If you decide to use sand, choose a fine grained sand variety and add 4 parts sand for every 1 part of wildflower seeds. Spread your seeds with a sweeping motion of your arm and aim for an even application of seeds over your wildflower beds.
Once your seeds have been planted, you can press them into the earth either by lightly raking over the area, walking on the area, or rolling a garden roller over your seeds. This will increase the contact between the seeds and the soil and boost germination rates. You can also add a thin layer of lightweight mulch, such as weed-free straw, over your planting area to give your seeds a bit of extra protection, but be sure not to cover your seeds up with too much mulch or soil as most wildflower seeds need light to germinate.
After planting, seeds can be watered in once, but you typically won’t need to water your seeds again until they sprout in spring. This planting method is pretty hands off and it works well for most wildflower seeds, particularly seeds that need cold stratification.
Alternate method: Planting wildflower seeds in fall in pots.
Sowing wildflower seeds directly in the ground in autumn works in most gardens, but you will often lose some seeds to animals during the winter months. If you have seeds that you really care about or if you’d like to grow wildflower plants to sell at a native plant sale in spring, there is another outdoor planting method: planting in pots!
To get started, select growing containers with drainage holes or drill your own holes with a power drill. Then, fill up your pots with potting mix, press your wildflower seeds into the soil, and give your seeds a bit of water.
Once you’ve planted your seeds, move your plant pots into a protected spot, such as under an outdoor stairwell, or cover the tops of the pots up with a bit of chicken wire to deter digging animals. Pots should be kept in an area that receives some sun, and if you cover the pots up with lids, you’ll want to make sure to water your pots from time to time so that the soil stays moist.
As with inground planting, the best time to sow wildflower seeds in pots in autumn is after a hard frost or two. This will allow seeds to cold stratify outdoors, but you won’t run the risk of seeds germinating late in the season. If seeds do germinate too late in the year, they can become damaged by the cold weather and not come back in spring.
Tip: If you’re on a budget and want to start seeds in pots, use old milk jugs for planting. Simply cut the jugs in half, poke holes in the bottom section, and then plant your seeds in the lower half of the jug. When you’re done planting, tape the top half of the jug into place to act as a mini greenhouse dome!
Planting wildflower seeds in spring.
If you plant wildflower seeds outdoors in autumn, nature will do all of the cold stratifications for you, and your seeds should germinate well. However, if you forget to plant your wildflower seeds in autumn or you would simply rather plant seeds in spring, you can do that, too. If you’re growing seeds that need to be stratified in spring, you’ll need to stratify the seeds yourself with the following tips; however, if you’re growing seeds that don’t need to be stratified, skip ahead to the planting instructions below.
To cold stratify seeds in spring, place your seeds on a moist paper towel, slip the paper towel into a Ziploc bag, label the bag with your seed variety, and pop the bag into your fridge for about 4 weeks. This period of cold and moisture will “trick” your seeds into thinking they’ve overwintered outdoors, and it’s key if you want seeds to sprout abundantly. After your seeds have chilled in the fridge for a few weeks, remove the seeds from the Ziploc bag and plant then using the planting steps below.
Regardless of whether your wildflowers require cold stratification or not, once you’re ready to plant seeds either in pots or in your garden, simply press your wildflower seeds into moist, prepared soil. Don’t cover your seeds with soil, as most wildflowers need light to germinate. When seeds are sown in spring, they will need to be watered regularly from the time they’re planted until the wildflower seedlings are about 4 to 6” tall.
Tip: Keep in mind that some seeds need to be stratified longer than others, so be sure to check your seed packet for specific cold stratification and planting instructions. If you’re growing wildflowers using indoor cold stratification methods, cold stratification usually begins either in February or March; seeds are transplanted into pots in March or April, and then plants are transplanted into the garden in May after the danger of frost has passed.
Planting wildflower seeds with seed balls.
Seed balls are probably the most fun way to plant wildflower seeds, and you can use this planting method either in spring or fall. Wildflower seed balls are made with your favorite flower seeds, as well compost, water, and a bit of powdered clay to hold everything together. Once they’re made, wildflower seed balls are quite compact and sturdy, allowing you to throw seed balls into hard-to-reach areas where you’d like wildflowers to grow.
Technically, you can throw seed balls right onto grass or in weedy areas, but seed balls will germinate better if you prepare the earth a bit by raking away leaves and extra plant debris. After that, just throw your seed balls where you’d like them to go, and nature will do the rest for you. When it rains, the seed balls will break apart, and the seeds will eventually germinate.
Typically, you’ll get the best germination results if you cold-stratify seed balls by either planting them in the fall or by cold-stratifying the wildflower seeds before you make your seed balls. Because seed balls are so quick to make and easy to use, they’re a favorite planting strategy for kids and beginning gardeners. Just keep in mind that you may run into trouble if you throw seed balls onto private property.
Caring for wildflowers and native plants
The hardest part about growing wildflowers is deciding where to plant them. After that, wildflowers pretty much take care of themselves. However, even the sturdiest native wildflowers grow a lot better with a bit of help from you during their first year of growth.
When wildflowers first germinate, they will need to be watered regularly to keep the soil moist. Once seeds reach about 6” tall, you can dial back the amount of watering you do, but you’ll still want to water your plants from time to time until they’re about a year old. Once established, wildflowers rarely need to be watered, and they typically won’t require fertilizer.
Since wildflowers are so low maintenance, they’re great plants to keep in out-of-the-way locations. Just remember to check on your plants from time to time, prune them if needed, dig up weeds as they sprout, and deadhead spent flowers if you don’t want your plants to go to seed.
What wildflowers should I grow?
The best wildflowers to grow in your garden are the plants that are native to your growing region. Some seed catalogs sell wildflower mixes for particular growing regions, but you can also pick up wildflower seeds online or at local plant nurseries. For an even more budget-friendly option, you may want to try gathering wildflower seeds from the wild!
While the seeds that are native to your growing zone will vary, some popular choices for wildflower gardens include:
- Wild lupines (Lupinus perennis)
- Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
- Coneflower (Echinacea spp.)
- Milkweed (Asclepias spp.)
- Great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
- Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
- John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum)
- Asters (Symphyotrichumspp.)
- Goldenrod (Solidago spp.)
- Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum)
- Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
- Columbine (Aquilegia spp.)
- Blanket flower (Gaillardia aristata)
- Ox-eye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare)
- Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum)
- Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea)
- Blue vervain (Verbena hastata)
- Black eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
- Northern blazing star (Liatris novae-angliae)
Frequently asked questions
What month is best to plant wildflower seeds?
Autumn is the best time to plant wildflower seeds outdoors. In warm climates, September is usually a great month for planting, while gardeners in chilly, northern regions may want to wait until November to plant wildflower seeds. If you need to start wildflower seeds indoors with cold stratification, February or March are excellent months for planting.
Will wildflowers come back every year?
Most will! There is an assortment of wildflowers, including annuals, perennials, and biennials. Perennial wildflowers will come back every year, while annuals and biennials are often great at self-sowing as long as you don’t deadhead their spent flowers.
Should I soak wildflower seeds before planting?
No. Soaking large seeds, like corn and sunflower seeds, prior to planting can boost germination rates, but it isn’t necessary with most wildflower seeds. That said, some wildflowers will germinate better if they’re exposed to a period of cold and moisture (known as cold stratification) prior to planting.
Does wildflower mean native?
Not necessarily. Native plants are wildflowers, but not all wildflowers are native to your growing region. If you want to get the most benefits out of wildflowers, look for wildflowers that are native to your particular growing location.
What classifies a flower as a wildflower?
Wildflowers are plants that are found naturally growing in the wild, although they may not be native to your particular growing zone. Unlike plant cultivars and hybrid plants that are developed by plant breeders, wildflowers retain all of their “wild” characteristics, and they are often hardier, need less water, and offer more benefits to pollinators.
What is the most common wildflower?
Black-eyed Susan is one of the most common wildflowers, and it can be found growing throughout much of North America. Black-eyed Susan plants are known for their bright, golden-yellow petals and their protein-packed seeds that are highly attractive to birds like goldfinches.
Summary
Growing wildflowers offers so many benefits to the backyard gardener. Wildflowers are easy to keep, highly attractive to wildlife and they’re perfectly pretty too! And, of course, many wildflowers make spectacular bouquets and pressed flowers, and some can even be used to make homemade dyes.
Regardless of why you want to grow wildflowers, these adaptable plants will fit into both informal and formal gardens alike, and they’re must-haves in pollinator habitats. We hope the planting tips we’ve covered today will help you grow your own wildflowers. But if you’d like to learn even more, you may enjoy our article on spring ephemerals, which are some of the earliest wildflowers to bloom in spring!
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