Sowing hardy annuals From Growing from Seed Marking out for sowing Before sowing look at your seed packets and decide which varieties you think will look good next to each other and which grow the tallest and so should be sown towards the back. Lay the packets on the soil where you intend to plant them and move them around until you are satisfied. If you prefer, draw out a plan before you start. Then use the tip of a cane to mark out the areas devoted to each variety making the space at least 2ft (60cm) across. Alternatively, sprinkle sand in narrow bands to mark the boundaries of each area. Try and make the patches oval, round or kidney shaped and slightly irregular as hardy annuals usually look best in informal groups. Sowing the seed It always pays to sow the seed in shallow furrows (drills) as you will then know that seedlings which come up out of line will be weeds. Check on the seed packet to see how far apart and how deep the drills should be and mark them in the soil with the tip of a cane. They should be in concentric rings or parallel rows. If the soil is dry water the drills well from the spout of the watering can. Now sow the seed very thinly in the drills. Use a trowel or the back of the rake to cover the seeds and the flat of the rake to firm them gently. Label the group and wait for the seedlings to appear. Soon after they come through they will need to be thinned out to give them space to grow and the seed packet will tell you the final spacings to aim for. If the thinnings are removed carefully they can be replanted. Weeds should be hoed off or carefully removed from close to the seed-lings. Large seeds like canary creeper, nasturtium and sweet peas are big enough to be planted individually. Back to Sowing hardy annuals Soil and situation Preparing the site Annual Manual ©copyright 1999 Graham Rice. All Rights Reserved. All Images Digitally Watermarked.