Flowers are necessity, not a spirit, not a luxury.

If youre living in a place you love, planting flowers will come naturally, as an expression of contentment and - in the case of perennials - of an intent root oneself in that favored spot. In a temporary home, too, though, planting flowers will help you to feel more settled. A few bright annuals can soften harsh coners and camouflage unattractive areas, and even attract new friends. One of the most appreciates hollyhock patches Ive ever grown was a screen of the flowers in front of the bare wall of a rented house. When you start flower from seed, youll have dozens of plants for the price of a single six-celled market pack, and you can spread them lavishly around your home and garden. Home-seeded flowers usually come in a greater variety of colors than seedlings offered by nurseries, and you can grow unusual kinds like ballonflower and schizanthus, which arent widely available as plants. Most vegetable seeds germinate well in darkness, but many flower seeds need light in order to germinate. This neednt be direct sunlight; in fact, in most cases, it shouldnt be. Indirect light is fine and less likely to over-dry the soil, or you can keep flats of planted seeds under fluorescent lights. Some flowers have extra-fine, dustlike seeds. Sometimes seeds for different colors of a flower will germinate at different rates. If youve sown a packet of mixed-color seeds, allow at least an extra week for possible stragglers to sprout if you want the widest possible color sampling. Otherwise, except for avoiding high-nitrogen fertilizer, which can retard blooming, follow the same principles in starting flower seeds as you would for vegetables. You can save seeds from garden flowers, too, as long as theyre not hybrids. However, both annual and perennial flowers will bloom for a longer time if you remove spent blossoms as they fade. If you do wish to save seeds from your flowers, set the seed capsules or seed heads dry on the plant. In some cases you might need to bag them so they wont shatter. Flower seeds are easy to save because they are usually on dry form, not in fleshy fruits. Youll have to assume that theyve been cross-pollinated with others of their species. The colorful, often perfumed, pollenrich lower is, after all, the plants invitation to the insect world to assure pollination for a new crop of seeds. The following directions for starting garden flowers from seed will you specific hints for the needs of some of the most frequently planted flowers. Germination temperatures refer to the temperature of the soil or growing medium. Unless otherwise specified, cover the seed with soil to a depth of three times its diameter.

ANNUALS

Annual flowers bloom the year theyre planted, usually all summer until frost. They generally live for just one season, but a few of the flowers we grow as annuals in cold-winter climates, like geraniums, are normally perennial in their native tropics. Ive kept alyssum, petunias, geraniums, lobelia, coleus, impatiens, and stocks alive over winter in the greenhouse for a second season of bloom. Some annuals self-seed freely, among them calendula, cosmos, nicotiana, portulaca, snapdragons and spider flower. Ive grown and liked all of the following annuals.

Ageratum Ageratum houstonianum

Also called flossflower, ageratum has lavender-blue or white tufted flowers and grows 6 to 8 inches high. Seeds are available for both hybrid and open- pollinated cultivars. Days to Germination: About 7 days at 800F (270C) When to Plant : For bedding plants, sow seeds under lights or in a greenhouse in February or March. How to Plant: Ageratum needs light to germinate, so dont cover the seeds; just press them lightly into the soil. Right after your last frost, set transplants in the garden, spacing them 9 to 10 inches apart. Growing conditions : Ageratum prefers rich, well-drained soil in full sun.

Alyssum Lobularia maritima

The delicate flowers of the 3- to 6-inch-high alyssum plant may be white, rose lavender, or purple. Days to Germination: About 7 days at 750F (240C) When to Plant : Sow seeds outdoors two to three weeks before the last frost date. How to Plant: You can start seeds early indoors, but the earliest planting method for alyssum is to simply scatter the seeds on the ground where you want them to grow. Leaves seeds uncovered, because they need light to germinate. Thin plants to stand 4 to 5 inches apart. Growing conditions: The plants are fairly frost-hardy and do well in most soils except those that are highly alkaline. Full sun is best. My plants thrive in an eastern exposure with plenty of light, but with direct sun only in the morning.

Aster Callistephus chinensis

These lovely daisylike flowers come in rose, pink, white, lavender, scarlet, and occasionally yellow. You can buy seeds for 8- to 10-inch-tall bedding asters and 18- to 24-inch-tall cutting varieties.

Days to Germination: 10 to 14 days at 700F (210C); germination is sometimes as low 55 percent. When to Plant : For a head start, plant seeds in small pots six weeks before your last frost, or so seeds directly in the ground after danger of frost has passed. How to Plant: Cover seeds lightly with fine earth. Give seedlings plenty of light and protect them from severe cold when hardening off. Space plants 12 to 15 inches apart, and pinch them back in June to encourage bushiness. Asters dont like to be transplanted. Growing Conditions: Theyll do better in soil that isnt too highly acid and seem to have in both poor and dry soil. Pests and diseases: Unfortunately, asters are bothered by several plant diseases, including wilt and yellows. Plant them in a different spot each year to escape wilt, destroy affected plants. Leafhoppers and other insects spread yellows disease.

Bachelors Button Centaurea cyanus

Also called cornflowers, these cottage-garden favorites have lightly shaggy blue, or white blossoms. Days to Germination: About 7 days at 700F (210C) When to Plant: Most gardeners plant the seeds in the open ground several weeks before the last frost. When to Plant : Cover lightly with fine soil. Thin plants to 8 inches apart. They bloom in cool weather. Growing Conditions: Bachelors buttons tolerate cold weather, crowding, and poor soils, but they do not transplant well. Varieties: Both tall (30-inch) and dwarf (12- to 16-inch) varieties are available. A ageflowered perennial bachelors button is available. Plan this in early spring also, but a week before your last frost, and look for seedlings in a month. The seeds need darkness to germinate, so they should be covered. Germination of perennial centaurea is often erratic.

Balsam Impatiens balsamina

Also called ladys slipper by the grandmothers of my childhood, this is traditional sprite thats easy to handle for both seed-starters and seed-savers. The 1- to 2-inch, rose, or cerise camellialike flowers peek out from under stems and leaves of 18-inch plants. A 12-inch topblooming strain is also available. Days to Germination: 8 to 14 days at 700F (210C) When to Plant : Plant balsam seeds right in the garden after all danger of frost has ended, or for an early start, plant seeds in flats six to eight weeks before last frost. How to Plant: Space seeds about 2 inches apart, and thin seedlings to 10 inches. Growing Conditions: Balsam likes good soil, well drained but with a steady supply moisture. It thrives in part shade as well as in sun.

Bell-of-Ireland Moluccella laevis

These green charmers send up 2- to 3-foot spires of tiny white flowers surrounded by green cup-shaped bracts. Bells-of-Ireland and cutting-garden favorites. Theyre good for drying, too. Days to Germination: 25 to 35 days at 550F (130C) When to Plant : For direct seeding outdoors, press seeds lightly into soil about two weeks before the last frost date, or start indoors six to eight weeks before the last frost and set out seedlings around the time of the last frost. How to Plant: The hard seed coats delay germination. To speed things up, soak the seeds in room- temperature water overnight. Stokes seeds recommends prechilling the seeds at 500F (100C) for five days before planting. Alternating temperatures between 500F and 850F (100C and 290C) seems to helps them germinate. Space plants a foot apart. Growing Conditions: Bell-of-Ireland need good drainage, but dont mind lean soil or light shade. Pick often for continued production. They self-sow readily.

Calendula Calendula officinalis

Also commonly called pot marigold, this plant blooms best in cool weather, producing daisylike flowers in shades of orange and yellow at the top of 15- to 18-inch stems. Calendula volunteers readily and blooms through the first frost of fall. Days to Germination: 10 to 14 days at 700F (210C) When to Plant: Start early spring plants indoors in February or March and a fresh batch for fall in June, or sow seeds right in the ground soon after you plant your spring peas. How to Plant: Cover the seeds; they germinated better without light. Thin seedlings to about a foot apart. Growing Conditions: Full sun is best, and lean soil id fine if not waterlogged. Remarks: Some newer mixes contain a wider color range. Double forms are also available. Calendula petals are edible - good in soups and salads.

Celosia Celosia spp.

This genus includes C. cristata, crested celosia, and C. plumosa, plumed celosia. Both the plumed and the crested celosia (also called cockscomb) come in warm shades of yellow, gold, cerise, crimson, and wine, and in a variety of heights, from 6-inch dwarf forms to plants 2 feet tall. Days to Germination: About days at 700F (210C); sooner at 800F (270C) When to Plant : Start seeds indoors about a month before your last frost date. If you plant seeds directly in the garden, wait until all danger of frost is over. How to Plant: Celosia seedlings suffer from uprooting, so if you start seeds indoors, plant them light shine through to help them germinate. Celosias are sensitive to cold, so water the seedlings with lukewarm water. Space dwarf varieties 6 inches apart, taller ones 12 to 15 inches.

Growing Conditions: Avoid chilling young plants or disturbing their roots while hoeing. Celosia responds to such insults by refusing to flower.

Coleus Coleus blumei

Coleus is great fun to grow because the plants show their true colors even as young seedlings - and what colors! The leaves display marvelous shades of salmon, burgundy, rose, copper, and green. Days to Germination: 10 to 12 days at 700F (210C) When to Plant : Coleus may be started indoors 2 1/2 months before planting out, or at any time of the year for houseplants. How to Plant: Coleus seeds respond to light, so press them gently into the soil without covering them. Keep the soil moist, preferably by bottom watering or misting, until seeds sprout. Always use lukewarm water for colues seedlings. Set seedlings out after the last frost, spacing them about 1 foot apart. Growing Conditions: Plants will grow in full sun, but their colors are more brilliant when theyre planted in shade or part shade. To encourage more side shoots, pinch off the central shoot when plants are about 8 inches high. Varieties: Catalogs offer a range of heights from 4 to 24 inches and a choice of leaf types fringed, mini, spinach-leaf, oak-leaf, sword-leaf, and the new dwarf base-branching Wizards, which are bushier than older types.

Cosmos Cosmos bipinnatus

Easy to grow from seed and strong self-seeders, these daisy-flowers plants have two common forms: Besides the rangy 3- to 5-foot C. Bipinnatus, with pink, crimson, or white blossoms and thready, delicate foliage, you can also consider that 1- to 2-foot C. Sulphureus, with orange or yellow flowers. Days to Germination: 15 days at 750F to 80 0F (240C to 27 0C) When to Plant : Sow the seeds outdoors around the time of your last frost. You can start early transplants of cosmos, too, of course, beginning in March or April, but they grow so easily from a scattering of seeds that I always direct-seed mine. How to Plant: Cover the seeds very lightly to allow some light to penetrate. space plants 1 foot apart. Growing Conditions: Cosmos likes full sun and well-drained soil, and blooms even in poor soil. Tall cosmos plants often need staking.

Dahlia Dahlia spp.