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Wallflowers
Species: Cheiranthus cheiri (syn. Erysimum cheiri) Family: Cruciferae Common name: Wallflower Height: 30 to 40cm (15 to 18 inches) Grow as: biennial Flowering period: April—June Use packetseeds.com Bedder mixture, Golden Bedder, Orange Bedder, Scarlet Bedder and Primrose Bedder wallflower seeds. Dwarf plants perfect for flower beds or containers. Wallflowers are attractive scented short-lived perennials, normally treated as biennials, grown for ornamental purposes in the spring. Growing: Grow in full sun on well-drained neutral soils (acid soils can give rise to club root). Plants are tolerant of poor soils. In the autumn, the young plants should be moved to their containers or flower beds. Space plants approximately 30cm (12 inches) apart. Pinch out growing tips when planting to encourage bushy growth. Plants should be removed at the end of spring once flowering has finished and replaced by annuals for succession of colour. Sowing: sow from late May until August. Germination temperature 20°C (68°F). Germination should take place within 3 weeks. If sowing in trays, prick out into small pots or trays until time to transplant. Alternatively, sow thinly direct into a nursery bed. In either case, transfer young plants to their final positions in early autumn once the summer bedding has finished. A native of the sea cliffs, quarries and old walls of southern Europe, hence its common name. The wallflower of gardens is unknown in the wild, and is probably a complex hybrid derived from species found in southern Europe. One of the best loved of plants, and naturalized in parts of Britain, the wallflower is really a perennial, but usually treated as a biennial. The plant is of bushy erect habit with fragrant flowers, about 2.5 cm across, yellow or brownish-yellow in the type, but varying from off-white to pink, terra-cotta, orange, scarlet and crimson in varieties of garden origin. The flowers are arranged in a loose raceme and are coloured various shades of yellow to redbrown, also dark violet and streaked. Most commonly used for bedding, they are useful for cut flowers and containers.
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