I get so cross when I buy a packet of “mixed seeds” and they all come up the same!
For those of you that regularly read this blog – you may recall that in the Spring the mice ate my sweet-pea seedlings.
This involved an hours round trip to buy more seeds, and back in March I wrote “by the summer, I will probably not even notice” meaning that I wont notice that I wasn’t growing the varieties that I had originally chosen.
Well I do notice
Mainly because one of the packets was a “mixed flake sweet pea” and they have all (well 10 plants out of 16) come up the same colour a rather dingy purple colour.
It’s like when you buy a packet of wine-gums (insert which ever of your childhood sweets is your favourite) and when you open the packet they are all green and yellow, with only 2 orange ones, one red and one black)
I suppose, looking at them, I could describe them as raspberry ripple if I was feeling generous.
Harrumph!
PS. Thank you all so much for your wonderful comments on my last post – glad it made you giggle 
Grrrr! This happened to me with a hot pepper mix! It seemed like they were all they same! Also I think my sweet peas are really Matucana, not Cupani, they are kind of like your maroon and purple ones!! They do look big and ruffly though!
It IS frustrating when you don’t get what your expected! maybe they should stop putting descriptions on the seed packets and sell them as sweet peas. pepper.
K
And when your friend offered you a wine gum it was always because a green one was next in the tube!
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You are so right
K
Oh dear Karen, just to add to the sweet pea saga, I have been cutting the blooms for a week now, and they only last a couple of days. I had put it down to the heat, but it hasn’t been exactly summer like this last few days, and they are still wilting rapidly. On a lot of mine, the stem just below the flower is going soft before they have fully bloomed. Are yours the same? If not, any idea why? They do look lovely when still on my wigwam though!
umm – I dont know what causes that – mine seem OK – but then as you know I never have them in the house.
K
Oh what a swizz Karen – an insult to top injury after all that grief those meeces caused !
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That’s right Anna – those meeces will be in big trouble if they do the same next year!
K
No sweet peas for me this year. But psssst! I was a very naughty girl at a garden visit on Sunday. They were growing some wonderful wigwams of delightfully scented sweet peas complete with very fat seed pods as well. So I did something I’ve never done before – I nabbed a couple and told myself I was encouraging the sweet peas to keep flowering for longer! :O
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Ohhhh VP – you are sooooo baaaaad!
Hope they turn into lovely plants for you next year.
K
Exactly the same happened with me this year: in my grandifloras-some of this type of sweet pea (a very modern sort,if Im not mistaken) have been mixed with my Painted Lady seeds. I simply detest the “raspberry ripple/speckled ” sweet peas. Not my cup of tea at all.
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It is only when I get a seed mix up – that it makes me think it must be quite hard to save seeds – I wonder how they do it on a commercial basis – I am sure the big company’s don’t have lots of women going around their gardens with paper bags …
Sorry your sweet peas are also not what you had hoped for this year.
K
Wait, that bouquet is dingy? I’m not seeing that, but then again I only have a few plants, dwarf ones from my mom, and each is a boring baby pink. So, I would take any of those colors you show and be happy in comparison! Guess it’s all in how they matched expectations. Do they still smell incredible? That’s what I like best about this flower, anwyay. (Love the word “cross” but don’t feel I can use it here without seeming Madonna-ish-ly faux-British.)
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Is cross a very British expression then?
Yes Karen – they do smell wonderful – which really is the whole point of sweet peas. You are right it is the whole expectation thing.
K
I understand the frustration, but your bouquet is still quite pretty.
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Thank you Shady – I am less cross than I was yesterday
K
Oh dear – I have decided not to bother with sweet peas next year. Last year was the only year when I have had good flowers and this was because I planted them in a very large pot with lots of good compost. The down side was that I had to get s step ladder to pick the flowers in the end!!
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My Mum keeps suggesting that I stop growing them from seed and buy seedlings – it feels like cheating somehow!
K
yeah what a bummer…. but still quite pretty I suppose? I’m coming back up your neck of the woods next weekend and CANNOT wait! I’m driving him-indoors mental talking about it all the time and it’s only a weekend but have planned about 90 things to do, including going to the Crug nursery…..
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LOL – why don’t you move up here
. Hope you have a fab visit to Crug don’t forget to check their opening hours on their website.
K
Last years sweet peas were wonderful!! Mine are the same colour except the trailing ones, but they are struggling. Mind you I’m struggling as well, the kitchens hot and Johanna has the day off!! I cant wait for the weekend yiphee!!
Sounds like you got the pick of the crop P.!
have a great weekend.
K
I rather like your sweet peas, but can understand your annoyance if the packet supposedly contained a mix. When sweets are sold in seethrough bags, I always study the packs closely and choose the one which looks as if it has the most red and black in! And I always feel the back of a bar of Cadburys whole nut chocolate to check there are plenty of hazelnuts in it! x
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LOL – I must remember to do that to the next bar of whole nut I buy – good tip
K
They look pretty in the photo and I bet they smell lovely but yes it is rather irritating when you have a plan. My problem is my plan changes too frequently.
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yes, looking at those beautiful flowers I see why you have every reason to be upset ;’)
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I know it’s irritating – don’t you remember trying to get the orange Smarties?? But lovely picture.
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