It’s that time of the year when my gardening mindset starts to shift from “what else can I start from seed?” to “how can I make the most out of a plant that’s done blooming and about to go to seed?”
A few days ago, I was eyeing my snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) and thinking how healthy and bursting the seed pods that were forming looked.
My snapdragons bloomed very well this year, compared to previous years. I think this is mainly because I managed to overwinter them outside. In previous years, when they were still young, the frost got to them and not an inch of snapdragon came back.
This year, they spent the winter in pots outside, in a sheltered location under the gazebo. I suspect the fact that they were undercover helped with the frost protection; and since they were still outside, there was still the cold element that triggers good blooming.
The downside of the early start is that they’re also done blooming early. But there are still ways to make the most of my snapdragons once the flowers are gone.
1. I’m getting the secondary flowers to bloom.
The secondary bloom is really hard to see in the beginning, especially if we’re blinded by the color and richness of the main flower stalks. But it’s there. See that tiny speck? That will become a new flower, if we give it a fighting chance.
The best way to ensure the secondary blooms actually open up into flowers is to help redirect the plant’s energy their way. We will do this by removing the seed pods. Have a look at this stem. I can spot five secondary flowers waiting to bloom on just this stem.
I take care of this task after the seed pods have started forming, but before they’ve had time to mature. True, I could do it earlier and deadhead the flowers (and I do, some of them).
But I prefer to wait a bit longer just because of the blooming pattern of snapdragons. Because while the lower flowers in a ‘dragon’ are done, the top flowers on the spire are still going strong.
I just cut off the stem that’s holding the seed head right above the first set of leaves below.
Our goal is to help them bloom. And even though secondary flowers will not be as large as the main flower stakes that bloomed first, there will be plenty of them. And they do serve to extend the flowering season, both for our enjoyment and for that of our pollinator friends.
2. I’m letting some snapdragon pods go to seed.
Depending on who you ask, snapdragons are either an annual or a perennial. They are, in fact, tender perennials. So if you’re gardening in a milder USDA zone (or equivalent), you’ll be able to grow them as a perennial.
If you’re gardening in an area that gets long cold winters, you’ll probably think of them as annuals. Both are perfectly valid methods to grow snapdragons.
I garden in a temperate climate, so it can go either way, even varying from one year to another. That’s why I like to save a backup of fresh seeds every year that I can use to restart my snapdragons from, just in case a cold snap claims some over the winter months.
Keep in mind that if you do want to start snapdragons from seed, they’ll do better if they go through a process called stratification. I wrote a pretty comprehensive guide on how to do cold stratification when you’re starting seeds. Bookmark it now (or save it to Pinterest) so you can refer back to it next spring.
I grow snapdragons of various colors, so I let at least one seed pod of each color dry on the plant. The trick is catching it right on time, before the seed pod pops open and scatters the seeds all over the place.
Since snapdragons seeds are so minuscule, I just cut the whole seed pod when it’s almost ripe and save it as a whole. I keep them in open jars to finish drying up, then store them in paper bags.
3. I keep watering and mulch it again, if needed.
Snapdragons do well in the sun, but they really prefer a partly sunny spot. The problem is that what looked like part sun in April, when we planted them, is quickly becoming full sun in June and July.
And you’ll notice that snapdragons have thin foliage. It’s neither thick and watery, nor glossy and textured. That makes them sensitive to full sun, especially when they’re not getting enough water.
And because snapdragons don’t have particularly large or deep root structures, the plant may lose its strength and vigor. If you’re growing them as annuals, then that’s less of a concern. But if your snapdragons are perennial, any stressors this year is likely to affect the health of the plant for the following blooming season too.
So it’s really important at this time of year, once snapdragons are done blooming, that we keep watering them. If necessary, we can even add an extra layer of mulch. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. Even an extra layer of fresh compost will be a much-welcome addition to the soil.