How To Grow

Cosmidium is a superb annual for bedding or baskets. Philippine stays nice and compact and flowers until frost. Latin Cosmidium burridgeanum Difficulty Easy Season & Zone Exposure: Full sun Zone: 2-10 Timing Like Cosmos, Cosmidium can be started indoors, but it is so easy from direct sowing, we recommend reserving your indoor seedling space for fussier plants. Simply direct sow after all risk of frost has past. That’s early April to mid-June in south coastal BC. Cosmidium will be in bloom from late June to frost. Starting Sow seeds 1cm (1/2″) deeply. They should germinate in 6 to 15 days....

The thick walls of some pumpkins are wonderful for cooking and store well all winter. Pumpkins for carving are thinner walled so kids can decorate them easily.  Follow along with this handy How to Grow Pumpkins from seed Guide and have some Halloween fun this fall! Latin Cucurbita maxima & C. pepo. Family: Cucurbitaceae Difficulty Easy, but these big plants require lots of room. Season & Zone Season: Warm season Exposure: Full sun Zone: Not winter hardy. Compare the days to maturity to the length of a typical summer in your area. Days to maturity are from transplant date. Timing Direct sow or...

These big plants will grow in almost any soil, but getting the cob to mature is another matter. The maturity of the ears (cobs) is not controlled by the size of the plant, nor by day-length, but by the accumulated heat the plant has had while it grew. They call this the “heat units”. Only temperatures above 50 F count after the last killing frost of spring. Temperatures above 50 F add up to create the heat units. Corn plants generally grow very tall, and will shade other vegetables. Some plants will benefit from this shade, such as lettuce, but...

Perennial. The pea-like flowers of lupins grow in dense spires from their destinctive foliage. They will bloom 2 months from a spring sowing or early summer from fall sown plants. Latin Lupinus polyphyllus. Family: Fabaceae. Difficulty Easy Season & Zone Exposure: Full sun to partial shade Zone: 1-9 Timing Sow indoors 6-8 weeks before last frost, around mid to late February on the coast. If starting indoors, use peat or coir pots to limit root disturbance. Lupins work equally well direct sown in early spring (mid-March on the coast) when some risk of frost is still possible. Can be direct...

Coreopsis is sometimes listed as Calliopsis or Tickseed. How to Grow Coreopsis: Latin Coreopsis lanceolata Family: Asteraceae Difficulty Easy Season & Zone Exposure: Full sun Zone: 3-10 Timing Start indoors mid-February to late March for transplanting out after last frost – April is safe on the coast. Or direct sow mid-March (ideal) to mid-May. In areas where winter is mild, you can direct sow in the fall, as well. Seeds germinate in 5-25 days. If starting indoors, maintain soil temperature at 12-21°C (55-70°F) and provide bright light. Starting Sow seeds on the surface of the soil. Transplant or thin to...