Phacelia

[chris]

Just have to say, as well as being a great (and extremely fast growing) green manure, the flowers are just simply stunning.

Seriously, pictures do not do them justice - also, with the added bonus of them being bee friendly - my plot was alive with bees yesterday from just 6 flowering plants. Each plant had bees all over it (they are hives on our site)

[BertieFox]

Just to endorse your comments about phacelia 100%. It is a stunning bee flower and also acts as a good green manure as it grows so thick it overshadows and shades out competitors. For around 11 or 12 euros over here you can buy a huge box of seed, which I did seven or eight years ago, but I have never been without phacelia since, as it always finds somewhere to come up again and self seed. I tend to encourage it in the paths between the beds and in 'spare' corners of the garden. As you say it is absolutely beautiful and is always covered in summer with hover flies, bees, butterflies, and other pollinating insects. No garden should be without it.

[LincolnshireFloyd]

I'm surprised your phacelia is flowering already. Have they overwintered? I sowed two acres a few weeks ago and the plants are only a couple of inches tall. No doubt our bees will have their feast later on in the summer rather than now like yours. When you get a field full of them and the wind waves them they look like a purple sea.
Although they self seed easily it doesn't take long for nettles, docks and other unwanted weeds to invade and cramp their space.
I have to re-seed every other year otherwise it ends up a proper mess.
If I could get honey from Bumble bees I'd have a fantastic crop because the Bumble bees seem to like it even more than our honey bees.

[chris]

Yes, they've overwintered. They went from a couple of inches tall to probably about 2' tall (flowering) in the space of 3/4 weeks.

[alldigging]

The overwintered stuff is huge and flowering, the stuff started in pots this year is smaller but is going to crack open some flowers in a few days I think.
The more recently sown stuff isn't ready yet...

[binley100]

Chris ......try some crimson clover as well equally as stunning and attractive to the bees......thinking about a ,mix of the two next time I sow........

[chris]

I've ran out of seed now as I dug most of it in so i'nm going to let these self seed everywhere- I'll transplant a few seedlings after!

[binley100]

Have you been a norty boy ?

[chris]

Chris ......try some crimson clover as well equally as stunning and attractive to the bees......thinking about a ,mix of the two next time I sow........

cool, will have a look at it now thanks

[Two_Sheds]

Have you been a norty boy ?

I just saw it (banned) and wondered what on EARTH he'd done ... then realised it's a prank.

Good one

[Two_Sheds]

I'm surprised your phacelia is flowering already. Have they overwintered?

Most of mine gets killed by winter cold, but the seeds survive and germinate in early spring. Mine are flowering too

I have one crimson clover left (self-sown). It's not so prolific as fiddleneck.

[zazen999]

Love both of those; some pics from last year's flowers...Both my self sown phacelia and crimson clover flowered in the last week.

[VirginVegGrower]

I use phacelia now, but have been a fan of crimson clover for a while. I also use the white.

[PyreneesPlot]

Phacelia is good for attracting slugs too, which makes for an easier hunting job in the evening and keeps them away from other more valuable stuff. Well, that's what happened here, anyway!