Wildflowers — Beneficial Insect Blend

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Different flowers attract different sorts of insects. The flowers in this blend of Beneficial Insect Blend wildflower seeds were selected to attract predatory insects such as lacewings, hover flies, and ladybird beetles. With a healthy population of these insects in your garden, pest species like aphids, thrips, and caterpillars will be controlled naturally. This blend also attracts generalist pollinators that will increase yields in fruiting plants from peppers to peas. Feeding a healthy and diverse insect population is the best general way to encourage garden health and control the insects that cause the most obvious garden problems.

Baby Blue-Eyes	Nemophila menziesii
Bishop's Flower	Ammi majus
Black-Eyed Susan	Rudbeckia hirta
California Poppy	Eschscholzia californica
Candytuft	Iberis umbellata
Cilantro	Coriandrum sativum
Cosmos	Cosmos spp.
Fennel	Foeniculum vulgare
Gayfeather	Liatris spicata
Globe Gilia	Gilia capitata
Lance-Leaf Coreopsis	Coreopsis lanceolata
Purple Prairie Clover	Dalea purpurea
Shasta Daisy	Chrysanthemum maximum
Siberian Wallflower	Cheiranthus allionii
Sweet Alyssum	Lobularia maritima
Wild Bergamot	Monarda fistulosa

Quick Facts:

Flowers selected to attract predatory insects
Attracts lacewings, hover flies and ladybird beetles
Controls aphids, thrips, and caterpillars
Control insects naturally

Size: 5g (covers approx. 25 sq ft)

How To Grow: Unless otherwise stated, all the wildflower mixes will contain perennials, annuals, and biennials. Seeds must come into contact with the soil in order to germinate. Do not bury seeds more than 2-3 times their thickness. Continue reading below for some other tips on how to grow wildflowers from seed.

Difficulty
Easy

Season & Zone
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade
Zone: Zone 4.

Timing
Try to direct sow wildflower seeds during the period two weeks before, and eight weeks after, your last average frost date. Sowing when there is some risk of minor frost may improve germination. Wildflower seeds can also be sown in the autumn, but a certain percentage of seeds to may be lost to water, birds, and animals. To make the most of the annual species, direct sow in early spring.

Starting
Site Selection: If there are already no plants (including weeds) growing in the planting site, there may be a problem with the soil. Possible issues may be soil fertility, lack of drainage, or the need for soil amendments to improve texture. In such spots (eg, beneath a cedar tree), few plants will thrive, including wildflowers.

Site Preparation: Remove as much existing vegetation as possible through pulling or tilling under in order to minimize competition. Loosen the soil by scraping, raking, or tilling. Wildflower blends will not usually take if planted into existing lawn because the thatch prevents their contact with soil.

Seed Application: In small areas, seeds can be scattered by hand. In larger areas, you may want to employ a lawn spreader or some other mechanical means. We recommend adding 1-2 parts clean, dry sand to 1 part wildflower seeds which will help the seeds spread evenly. Do not use beach sand, as it usually contains salt. It may be wise to spread most of the seed, but to save some for filling in bald spots at a later date. Seeds must come into contact with the soil in order to germinate. Do not bury seeds more than 2-3 times their thickness.

Planting rates: Aim for a planting density of 70 seeds per square foot. 5g of seeds will cover 43ft². If seeding an area where site preparation and weeding are not possible, double this rate.

Growing
Keep the seeded area as evenly moist as possible to help the seeds germinate and the young seedlings become established. Weeds need to be kept under control. Once they are growing, most mixes will not require additional water except in long periods of hot, dry weather. All of our mixes should re-grow for several years, but will eventually benefit from re-seeding. In late summer, many of the components will produce seed heads that can be harvested and replanted the following spring.

Rating: 5 stars out of 5 based on 2 reviews from westcoastseeds.com