Garden Doctors: Grow annuals that will reseed themselves Garden Doctors: Grow annuals that will reseed themselves

Colleen A. of Santa Rosa asks: Can you recommend a few annual flowers that will reseed in my garden after I plant them for the first time? I would like to have them to grow where they may, and naturalize, and not have to replant every year.

There’s nothing better than to have “volunteer” seedlings come up every year, If they are the seedlings you WANT to have come back every year! There are a lot of “self-sowers” out there, and some are not as dependable as good ol’ perennials. The more dependable flowers you CAN count on coming back every year, to name a few, are: alyssum, calendula, cleome, cornflower, coreopsis, cosmos, dianthus, foxglove, hollyhocks, lunaria, nicotiana, portulaca, and viola. Some of them, depending if they are getting watered, will come back that same year.

Be sure not to put a thick layer of mulch on top of the ground where the seeds have already fallen because then you’ve buried them and they won’t be able to germinate.

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Christine V. of Santa Rosa asks: I am growing a few varieties of shelling beans that I can dry, store, and then enjoy during the winter. I’m not sure when the best time is to pick those beans for drying.

Any bean grown for the bean itself, the seed, rather than the pod, can be considered a shelling (dry) bean, although some varieties of beans are tastier than others, and that’s why they are labeled for “drying” or “shelling.”

Harvest the bean pods when the plants have matured, the pods and leaves have turned completely brown. Those are good indications that the seeds are dry and hard and ready for harvest. If the pods have turned yellow but are not completely brown and rain is in the forecast, cut off the plants near the ground, leaving the nitrogen-fixing roots to enrich the soil, and hang the stalks to dry out further in a cool, dry room. You could also spread the plants out on a piece of cardboard or screen and toss them around every few days to make sure all the bean pods get enough air circulation to dry out completely.

Once the pods have completely dried out, you could either use a fancy shelling tool that separates the pods from the beans, or sit outside on the back porch and break open the beans and separate them yourself. Have a few friends over to help with the chore and share some beans with them! Dried beans stored in airtight, lidded containers set in a cool, dry place will keep for 10 to 12 months. You could even store them in the freezer.

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Steve H. of Windsor asks: What is vermicompost? Is it the same as worm castings?

The terms vermicompost and worm castings are used interchangeably. It is an excellent amendment for starting seeds, as it is full of nutrients and helps support the young plants’ growth. If you’re starting seeds indoors, add a little to the seed-starting medium. For outdoor seeding, sprinkle it along in the trench or into the holes that you dug for the seeds.

Vermicompost also works well when used for top dressing right next to the drip line, if there is one. The best time to add soil amendments that are high in nutritional value is when the plants are actively growing. You could add it to the garden at any time, but it’ll be most beneficial to the plants when they’re growing. During the spring, summer, and fall, all plants can benefit from the excellent water-holding properties of vermicompost.

Dana Lozano and Gwen Kilchherr are garden consultants. Send your gardening questions to The Garden Doctors, at pdgardendoctor@gmail.com. The Garden Doctors can answer questions only through their column, which appears twice a month in the newspaper and online at pressdemocrat.com.