Growing plants from seed is not only the cheapest way to fill your garden it is also the most satisfying.

Whether you own a window box or half an acre, growing from seed gives you a wide range and scope of varieties, colours, perfumes and flavours.

It's a perfect way to enjoy yourself and keep fit.
Exercise body and mind to create your own beautiful garden. Make your garden an extension of your home - exterior decorate - your options are limitless with seed. It's a remarkably inexpensive hobby.

Growing from seed can be very simple - after all itâs a natural process. What could be easier than sprinkling a few seeds on an area of bare soil only to be rewarded with beautiful blooms a short while later.

Which Seed, Hardy and Half Hardy Varieties?

Hardy varieties:
These are sown directly outdoors where the plants are intended to grow.

Half Hardy varieties:
These are sown 'under glass' - either in the home on a warm, well lit window sill or in a greenhouse. The seedlings are transferred into pots or trays where they have more room to grow. They are then planted outside once all danger of frost has passed. Different types of seeds are grown different ways and flower at different times. To make it easy they are grouped together.

There are three basic groups of seed . . . Annuals, biennial and perennials

Annuals
These are generally the easiest seed to use for quick results. They grow one season only. Hardy Annuals include: Calendula, Godetia, Nasturtium, Sunflower. Half Hardy Annuals include: Impatiens, Lobelia, Marigolds, Petunias.

Biennials
These seeds are sown one year to produce flowers or vegetables the next. Hardy Biennials (HB) include: Canterbury Bell, Digitalis (Foxglove), Wallflower.

Other forms of Dobies Seeds:

F1 Hybrid Seeds
This seed is specially bred to get the best qualities from selected parent plants. These seeds are often more expensive, but produce plants that tend to be more vigorous and more able to resist pest and disease attacks; producing improved flowers and vegetables.

Coated Seed
A coating is applied to small seed, to make them easier to handle. The seeds can then be spaced out more evenly when sowing, giving them more room to grow and reducing the need for Îthinning outâ. This gives better plants and means less work. Dobies Easicote seeds include: Begonia, Lobelia and Petunia.

You don’t have to be an expert to create a beautiful garden from seed - it’s a very simple, straightforward process as long as you follow some basic rules.

A seed is a living thing, and as such needs air, warmth, moisture and food in order to germinate and grow.

Planning what to grow can be fun. You can organise your garden to give different colours, flavours and scents year round. Colour theme your garden, mix vegetables and flowers or create your own herb garden - your options are endless.

And you don’t have to buy the latest and best equipment to start.

Equipment

Indoor Sowing: You will need a good quality compost, a seed tray or pot with drainage holes, a tool to help re-pot seedlings called a ‘widger’, plant food and a watering can.

Outdoor sowing: You will need a rake, a fork, plant food and a watering can. Always read the instructions on each packet. They give you the best time, method and place to grow the particular seeds.

Indoor sowing for 'Half Hardy' Seeds

Choose your seeds and fill the seed tray or container with a good quality compost, leaving around 12 mm from the top edge. Scatter the seeds evenly, then press them gently into the surface. Cover larger seeds with a light covering of compost. Lightly water and cover with paper or glass to help conserve the moisture. Never let the surface of the compost dry out.

Transplanting Seedlings - giving them more room to grow When seedlings are large enough to handle, transfer into bigger pots or trays of compost to allow them to grow more easily. Holding by the leaves, carefully ease out the seedlings from their container, using a widger (or a teaspoon is fine), placing them into prepared holes. Gently press the compost around the roots and stem to leave the (seed) leaves just above the surface. Water lightly. Protect from direct sunlight for the first 3-4 days. When the seedlings are established begin to feed weekly.

Plant Out - Once all danger of frost has passed, plant out into beds, borders or patio containers where you want them to flower. Remember to keep plants watered as required, removing dead flowers to encourage more growth. Feed as required.

Outdoor Sowing for Hardy Seeds

Choose a sunny spot in the garden with weed free soil. You may need to dig the soil, leaving it until the first weeds appear. Pick out these weeds and rake soil to a fine crumbly surface.
Handy Hint: Digging in a fertiliser to the weed free soil, before sowing the seeds, will help improve your display.

'Broadcast Sowing' - You can scatter your seeds, in square or circular patches, around 0.5-1m in size. Many Annual Flowers are ideal for growing this way. When you've scattered the seed, lightly cover the soil, and gently press the soil down.

Sowing in rows - Fine seeds, such as carrots, can be sown by gently sprinkling along a pre-marked drill (shallow groove). They will need to be thined later. Larger varieties such as sweet peas, beans, peas & beetroot for example, can be sown singly in rows - this reduces the need to thin out.