Flowers are an important part of life, if only for the aesthetic and fragrance that they offer, most flowers are seasonal and are much more important and valuable for that. Some are native to only a few particular areas and have been exported to other places to enable others enjoy the looks of them.
One of such beautiful and uncommon flowers is the Baby blue eyes flower.
The Baby blue eyes is a gorgeous flower native to certain locations in California, especially around Baja, but it has been successfully grown in other places in America and even around the world.
The flowers are quite spectacular and ensure that insects which feed on its nectar, such as bees, butterflies, and other similar insects regularly visit your garden. Growing the baby blue eyes flower ensures that these insects visit your garden to help with the pollination of other flowers or vegetables that you’ve planted.
The Baby Blue Eyes Plant (botanical name Nemophila Menziesii) is a spreading shrub-like plant with succulent flowers holding six curved blue petals. The flower may grow to be about 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30 cm) high and around (30 cm) in width. This blue flower has a desirable soft and romantic hue that goes well with other pastel flowers if used as a component of a wildflower garden.
Even as a standalone plant the Baby blue eyes flower is a calm and beautiful sight. You can typically expect to see the baby blue eyes flowers during late winter when temperatures are between low and moderate, and the plant blooms till late spring or early summer.
The baby blue eyes plant is an fine choice for use in containers, rockeries or massed as border plants in annual gardens. They easily offer some of the earliest splashes of annual colour after the pass of winter.
Baby blue eyes plants are wildflowers native to California and other dry zones. It forms an important part of the coastal prairie, and are remarkably easy plamts to grow and maintain when kept in a garden.
Growing the Baby Blue Eyes Flower
The baby blue eyes flower is quite easy to grow from seed and this is also the best way to grow it. Choose a location with partial shade to full sun and one with enough shelter for the plant from strong drying winds.
This flower grows well in a variety of soil types well including sandy and gritty soils with some tolerance for drought and dry conditions. In fact, light sandy soil is the best option for planting the baby blue eyes flower, as it drains water well.
You have to wait till the soil temperature has warmed to about 60°F. (16°C) before planting those tiny seeds. Choose an area that is free of weeds and water the area thoroughly. Plant the seeds under a fine layer of soil around 1/16-inch (1.57 mm.) thick.
The Baby blue eyes plant will germinate anywhere from 7 to 10 days where the weather is cool and the days are short. Keep the planted seedbed consistently moist until the flower germinates.
As mentioned before, the Baby blue eyes’ seed grows readily but is not easy to transplant, so if transplanting ever becomes necessary a lot of care is required to make it possible. Fortunately, the flower is very easy to plant and germinates in no time at all.
Caring your Baby Blue Eyes plant
Because the baby blue eyes is a shrub-like plant with succulent leaves and stem, it requires quite little maintenance. The flower possesses the ability to survive moderately dry conditions but will wither off if faced with severe drying winds or drought.
Consequently the plant may need regular watering depending on whether it is planted in full sun or partial shade, and how dry the area in question is. Try not to overwater.
The flower does not require any fertiliser if it is planted in locations that have organic soil nutrients. To force the plant into a bushier formation, pinch the tips of its flower’s buds. When the plant has started flowering and the seed heads have formed, you can snip them off and leave them to dry off in a plastic or paper bag.
After a week of drying, shake the bag and carefully remove out the separated chaff, if you’re interested in removing the chaff entirely then you can use a sieve to work the finer bits out. You can then save the bags of seeds for the next spring and plant them to grow this wonderfully good looking plant again.
Placement of the Baby blue eyes flower
The baby blue eyes flower can be planted anywhere you are comfortable with having it, as long as soil and other requirements can be met. You can use it as a border plant for your garden or beds, or as an edging for paths and walkways, or as part of a mixed garden of wildflowers.
You can also plant some in a container to place at strategic locations of your house. The possibilities are endless as long as you are interested in seeing the calm blue of the flower.
