Stock flowers have a fragrant, spicy scent.Annual flowers are usually grown from seed and come in a range of colors.You should plant the flowers early in the spring or early autumn if the heat is not an issue.
Step 1: There is a sunny location.
The plants prefer full sun, but a garden bed with partial sun can work in a pinch.Do not put a garden bed in the shade.
Step 2: You should sow your seeds several times in the spring.
Start sowing seeds in April and May.You can enjoy the color and scent of these flowers longer if you sow your seeds in rounds.
Step 3: Prepare the ground.
The soil needs to be amended from the last season.You can amend it now by chopping it up with a rake or garden fork and adding a slow-release granularfertilizer and compost.If you have dense, compact soil, you may want to consider mixing it with garden sand.The sand improves the ability to drain.
Step 4: The soil should be free of weeds and stones.
Weeds and large stones should be removed as you rake it up.Weeds can compete with your stock flowers for valuable nutrition, and large stones can present obstacles for developing roots, so smaller pebbles should not cause any damage.
Step 5: The bottle should be filled with sand.
The areas where you will scatter the seed will be marked with this sand.
Step 6: Sand should be poured over the soil in straight rows.
The rows should be about 18 to 30 cm apart.
Step 7: The seeds should be planted along the line.
Keep the seeds on the line or as close to it as possible by sprinkling them over the sandy line.You will be able to sow additional rows of seeds later in the season if you sow the seeds in organized lines.
Step 8: Place the seeds in the soil.
You can either use a rake or hand it over.You only need a small amount of light soil.
Step 9: The seeds need to be watered.
It is possible to apply a mist or spray of water to the seeds without washing them away.
Step 10: In the early to mid-fall, sow additional seeds.
If you sow additional seeds in the fall, you can see more flowers emerge before the winter season begins.
Step 11: The soil needs to be moist.
After the soil becomes dry to a depth of 2 inches (5 cm), the flowers need another watering.The soil should be lightly watered once or twice a week during dry periods.Additional watering may not be necessary if you get rain at least once a week.Stock flowers should be avoided.Sopping wet soil leads to soggy roots and unhappy stocks.
Step 12: As soon as you see the weeds, remove them.
Too many weeds can cause your flowers to decline.Remove the weeds from their roots and all.Doing so rids the plant bed of weeds more effectively than just cutting them off.Alternatively, you can apply a light layer of mulch around flowers to smother weeds before they can grow.
Step 13: The flowers should be dead by the time the season ends.
The blossoms will start to fall as the weather warms.The flowers can't go to seed if they're cut off below the head.Before the plant dies off in the heat of the summer, deadheading the flowers encourages more blossoms to grow.
Step 14: Don't apply pesticides if they are necessary.
The plants are not prone to pest problems, even though they are occasionally attracted to stock flowers.