Garden Update 2013

[Farhan Ahmed]

Sir i hope so ....need your prayers....posting is looming around

[Izhar]

inshaAllah your efforts will produce good results... my larkspurs reseeded themselves extensively and 'm readily giving its seedlings in the neighborhood.. the other plants reseeded are nasturtiums, marigolds, phlox, gaillardia, zinnias, amaranthus, celosia, ageratum, cosmos, sunflowers etc

[Farhan Ahmed]

Great...Self seeded plant are like stumbling upon a treasure ......
However can you share your experience that which annuals come true from seed i.e. does seed collected from F-1 plant result in similar offspring or not(different habit/flower etc)....i Think petunia is one which reverts to local type.
your views?

If we can make a list of such annuals so that members can know which seeds are useless to collect because off spring would be different or so to say inferior.

[Izhar]

Well, they may not be 'true-to-type' but seeds worth saving for me were:

F1:
Bonanza french marigolds
Hulahoop petunias
Wave petunias
Sonnet antirrhinums
Magellan zinnias
Profusion zinnias
Gompherina Strawberry fields

Others:
Nasturtiums
Salvia
Celosia
Amaranthus
Larkspurs
Cosmos
Nicotina
Calendula
Dianthus
Phlox

[Farhan Ahmed]

I noticed following varieties are quite similar to parent plant if sown from seed collected from them........

Nasturtiums
Celosia (mutated but flower is still gorgeous)
Amaranthus
Larkspurs
Cosmos
Calendula
Dianthus
Phlox
French Marigold(flower was same but plant is less bushy)
Zinnias
Crown Pansy
Gaillardia
Candytuft
Hollyhock

[Munir]

If I understand correctly, F 1 seeds being hybrid either don't produce seeds or the seeds are infertile.Is it correct? Has anyone of us actually collected the seeds from F1 plants& sown them later with some results? Any personal experience please? Regardless, is it worth the effort/hassel ; collecting the seeds,keeping them in safe storage for 8-9 months,sowing them again in optimum conditions, the uncertainty in their results & the seedlings not being expensive & freely available in the market ? Please consider .

[Izhar]

Many of the Filial 1 (F1) plants do not produce seeds or if they do, the resulting plants have low ornamental value.. i have specifically mentioned the F1 hybrids i grew from saved seeds and were worth saving seeds for me as they produced (if not the same) beautiful plants, some of the plants were very different from the parents but were nice enough to keep...

[Farhan Ahmed]

Thats what i want to highlight.......Generally speaking F-1 varieties available in nurseries do not yield similar plants.... maybe due commercial reasons......for instance snapdragons do produce quite similar plant and blooms but color will be varied......there is bound to be something different in terms of bloom size, color plant habit etc. So if you want the exact cultivar next time, its better to buy it as seedling.

Extracts from Wiki
Disadvantages

"The main advantage of F1 hybrids in agriculture is also their drawback. When F1 cultivars are used for the breeding of a new generation, their offspring (F2 generation) will vary greatly from one another. Some of the F2 generation will be high in homozygous genes, as found in the weaker parental generation, and these will have a depression in yield and lack the hybrid vigour. From the point of view of a commercial seed producer which does not wish its customers to produce their own seed, this genetic assortment is a desired characteristic"

[UMARKHANMARDAN]

Aoa Farhan i personally like F-1 hybrids & do not save seeds for next season.but yes Izhar is right F-Sonnet,F-1 Hulahoop comes near to true type.i have seen so many self sown seeds of these varieties.this year i destroyed all self sown Sonnet.the reason is clear i don,t like mixed colors.even the Dwarf Snapdragon F- Floral showers come near to type.F-2(double cross) the cross hybrids of F-1 are not that good.i have planted once Snap dragon F-2 Vanity fair but it can not match the beauty & strength of F-1 Sonnet.F-2 are good if you want to fill big area in small budget other wise its good to go for F-1.

[saqib]

This season I am growing Calendula , petunia , marigold , Desi dahlia and hollyhocks from
last year collected seeds , Calendula is going great and is similar to its parent plant,
Dahlia is forming buds and are about to bloom in a few days , petunia and hollyhocks still
need 5-6 weeks to flower .Rate of germination was reasonably good except for marigold