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Florida Gardening

nicotiana, fragrant cloud, tips?

16 years ago

I know some of you have grown nicotiana, any tips? My seeds arrived yesterday and I am kind of afraid to even touch them, they are so tiny!!

It says top sow, does that mean I just sprinkle them on top of the soil? I really want these to do well so any tips will be appreciated.

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Comments (5)

naplesgardener
16 years ago
I planted a couple different kinds of nicotiana last year and some of them even lived :)
The seeds ARE very tiny and I didn't plant directly in the bed. I started them in small pots, wetting the seed starter mix (finer grained than potting mix) then sprinkling some seeds on top and pressing down lightly.
You hardly need to cover them with any more soil since they are so small.
I ended up with 20 seedlings that I planted and they were nice but not FABULOUS to the point that I'd never be without them.
Mine were supposed to be fragrant but it was very faint.
Maybe they needed more water to be their best and I'm stingy with water (although I do mulch).

Let us know how yours do. Maybe I'll be inspired to try them again.
manature
16 years ago
I grew woodland tobacco from seed a couple years or so ago, and it was fantastic. Nice, big basal rosettes on the ground and flower spikes about 3 to 4 feet tall, covered with very fragrant white flowers. They reseeded themselves the next year, but then disappeared. I started them in pots, as described above, then put them in larger containers, and then the seeds sprang up around where the containers had been.

That's the only time I've tried them, but I wouldn't mind giving them a go again.

Marcia
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That is great news about the wafting. I plan to have them in large pots all over my porch this summer so I can enjoy them while relaxing in the evenings. My little seedlings seem to be growing very slowly compared to the old-fashioned vining petunias that I started (which are already flowering and are truly heavenly scented). I hope that they are not suffering from root shock since I only recently pricked them out into individual containers. But it could also be the cooler temperatures of my grow room, too. I was reading that these plants thrive best in warm temperatures so I put them down on seedling heat mats yesterday. Time will tell. I have high hopes for these little babies. I have been reading about other types of Nicotiana having an easily damaged tap root. Have you ever noticed Nicotiana 'Fragrant Cloud' being sensitive to transplant shock?
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Agree that nicotiana sylvestris a/k/a None but the Lonely (why?) is the very best for fragrance - scents the whole garden. A big, big plant and not just tall but those huge leaves need room to spread. It seeded itself from last year for the first time though I also set out plants. The plants bloomed much earlier but both are flowering now. Out in back it's in a waste area that was weeds last year - I figure it will reclaim it for flowers since the nicotiana leaves crowd out everything else. None of the nicotiana have much fragrance during the day - it's at night that they come into their own.
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Great!! I forgot to check for posts yesterday & now my questions are answered!! Does anyone have a reliable source for purchasing seeds? I would post on the exchange page but the only things that I saved last year were marigolds, cosmos, & zinnia. I'd love to buy some of different colors and sizes with wonderful fragrances. It sounds like I'll be shopping for some seed starting mix and planting my milk jugs full of my Nicotiana!! Yippeee!! When I found my plants last year @ W-mart, they were dried out and not looking very good at all but there were 4 stems that were about 1 1/2 tall. They recovered wonderfully! The also needed support in my container on the deck. Are there any other highly scented flowers that I should try? Thanks!! LC Grace
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an_ill-mannered_ache
16 years ago
marcia, how long into the hot season did your tobacco plants last?
jupiterplants
16 years ago
would they grow in zone 10 ?
manature
16 years ago
Ill-Man, I grew the woodland tobaccao (nicotiana sylvestris, I think) all summer long. It died back in cold weather, but had seeded, so popped back up in the spring. I grew it in a fairly shady spot, with just filtered light after late morning. I truly loved this plant, and it was happy in a pot.

Marcia

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