Description:
This soft blue colour is a crowd favourite, especially with wedding florists.
Will bloom on short stems that will gradually lengthen throughout the season and reach approx 30cm.
Frost hardy and easy to grow but has medium-high water needs, especially in hot weather.
It is recommended to remove buds/flowers until the stems reach your desired height so that the plant can put it’s energy into foliar growth rather than producing flowers and seeds (read my blog post on pansies for more info on this).
Prone to slug damage so have a plan ready to manage this especially during wet winters.
Pansies make a great ground cover / “living mulch” for other plants which helps with water retention and weeds as well as encouraging the pansies to elongate if they are competing for light. I always plant Pansies along the edges of my Sweet Pea beds.
Seed count: 25 seeds
Site: Full sun - part shade (prefer morning sun)
Height: 30cm (stem length will start at around 10cm and get gradually longer through the season).
Sowing method: Raise seedlings and transplant late-summer through to winter. Frost hardy. Can be direct sown but transplant recommended for higher germination rate.
(For long stems by September, I plant my pansies in March which means I need to start seeds in late-Jan. I use humidity domes to help keep moist while germinating.)
Sowing depth: 0-2mm - surface sow and lightly cover with vermiculate. A lot of sources will say that pansies need darkness to germinate but I haven’t found this to be true.
Spacing: 5cm for cut flower production (plant super tight so they have to stretch and fight for light to encourage stem lengthening).
Days to germination: 7-14 days @ approx. 18-21 degrees.
Days to maturity: approx. 90 days till first flowers but can take 6+ months to get long stems.
Support: Not required but planting in raised beds with the soil level 5-10cm below the lip of the bed is a great way of giving them support.
Yield: Approx 6-8 stems per plant.
Successions: I do one main planting followed by a few smaller successions as I am in an area that gets hot early so the plants get tired and fizzle out. My winter successions are long enough to harvest just as my early autumn successions finish.
Vase life: 7-14 days.
Harvest stage: When stems reach desired length and a bloom is just opening. Unopened buds will continue to open in water.
TIPS:
Pansies are trailing plants and tend to grow along the ground as they get too tall to support themselves so you can’t tell how long their stems are just by looking at them. You need to follow the stem to the base of the plant and feel for stem length.
I use my finger nails to cut stems as pansies are too fiddly to cut with snips.
They can also be quite delicate and stems will snap if not handled carefully. Pinch leaves off when stripping stems rather than just running your hand along it like a normal cut flower.
For a more detailed info on growing pansies as cut flowers you can read my blog post here: https://www.quaylecottage.com.au/blog/pansies-as-a-cut-flower
IMAGE CREDIT: Second photo is a bridal bouquet by florist @annamayhenry
(These seeds were not grown on our farm. They were purchased wholesale and excess to our needs).
Description:
This soft blue colour is a crowd favourite, especially with wedding florists.
Will bloom on short stems that will gradually lengthen throughout the season and reach approx 30cm.
Frost hardy and easy to grow but has medium-high water needs, especially in hot weather.
It is recommended to remove buds/flowers until the stems reach your desired height so that the plant can put it’s energy into foliar growth rather than producing flowers and seeds (read my blog post on pansies for more info on this).
Prone to slug damage so have a plan ready to manage this especially during wet winters.
Pansies make a great ground cover / “living mulch” for other plants which helps with water retention and weeds as well as encouraging the pansies to elongate if they are competing for light. I always plant Pansies along the edges of my Sweet Pea beds.
Seed count: 25 seeds
Site: Full sun - part shade (prefer morning sun)
Height: 30cm (stem length will start at around 10cm and get gradually longer through the season).
Sowing method: Raise seedlings and transplant late-summer through to winter. Frost hardy. Can be direct sown but transplant recommended for higher germination rate.
(For long stems by September, I plant my pansies in March which means I need to start seeds in late-Jan. I use humidity domes to help keep moist while germinating.)
Sowing depth: 0-2mm - surface sow and lightly cover with vermiculate. A lot of sources will say that pansies need darkness to germinate but I haven’t found this to be true.
Spacing: 5cm for cut flower production (plant super tight so they have to stretch and fight for light to encourage stem lengthening).
Days to germination: 7-14 days @ approx. 18-21 degrees.
Days to maturity: approx. 90 days till first flowers but can take 6+ months to get long stems.
Support: Not required but planting in raised beds with the soil level 5-10cm below the lip of the bed is a great way of giving them support.
Yield: Approx 6-8 stems per plant.
Successions: I do one main planting followed by a few smaller successions as I am in an area that gets hot early so the plants get tired and fizzle out. My winter successions are long enough to harvest just as my early autumn successions finish.
Vase life: 7-14 days.
Harvest stage: When stems reach desired length and a bloom is just opening. Unopened buds will continue to open in water.
TIPS:
Pansies are trailing plants and tend to grow along the ground as they get too tall to support themselves so you can’t tell how long their stems are just by looking at them. You need to follow the stem to the base of the plant and feel for stem length.
I use my finger nails to cut stems as pansies are too fiddly to cut with snips.
They can also be quite delicate and stems will snap if not handled carefully. Pinch leaves off when stripping stems rather than just running your hand along it like a normal cut flower.
For a more detailed info on growing pansies as cut flowers you can read my blog post here: https://www.quaylecottage.com.au/blog/pansies-as-a-cut-flower
IMAGE CREDIT: Second photo is a bridal bouquet by florist @annamayhenry
(These seeds were not grown on our farm. They were purchased wholesale and excess to our needs).
