If you’re looking for a colorful addition to your garden, snap dragons are the perfect choice! This vibrant flower is easy to grow and provide plenty of color throughout the growing season. However, there are still some tips and tricks you should know to get the most out of these beautiful flowers.
Growing Snap Dragon Flowers
ANTIRRHINUMS or Snapdragons (an-tir-i’num). One of the most popular of our Spring flowering annuals (best treated as an annual, though the plants are perennial), when the spikes of bloom are longest and individual florets largest and brightest. Snapdragons can be flowered all the year round in mild climates. Best results are from Autumn sown seeds.
There are dwarf (Nanum) medium-high (semi-dwarf) and tall (maius grandiflorum)· varieties, each capable of giving massed colour displays in the garden, and each unsurpassed for its particular work.
Splendid for decorative use, especially under artificial light, are the rose and salmon pinks, tawny, old gold, primrose and shell pink. The colour range now covers scarlet, crimson-purple, yellow, white, copper-orange to carmine.
Snapdragons like sunlight and a soil that is well-drained, and not too heavily manured. Good medium loam suits them best, but any soil and almost any situation will grow some of the hardier types well.
Snap Dragon Varieties
Among the tall giant flowered varieties, Rose King (rich rose self), Rose Queen (soft pale pink), Moon light (deep tango, carmine tube), Old Gold and Wallflower (wall flower shade and gold centre), Cardinal and Monarch (scarlet and crimson) . All are splendid. Yellow King sets off the carmines and crimsons well. Moonlight and Old Gold make a bright, but blending com bination. In the semi-dwarf, Majestic type, there are large florets on stocky bushes, which can be bedded in exposed aspects. Grand, cut flowers, these. Either plant mixed varieties, or Golden Dawn (tango) with Sunset (terra-cotta and rosy salmon) to set off Red Chief (deep scarlet), and a relief in the apricot and yellow suffusions of Twilight. Others are Rose Marie (carmine) and Victory (terra-cotta to yellow).
Snapdragons may be grown from cuttings of a choice variety that pleases. Take short 3 to 4 inch pieces, choosing unflowered shoots and strike in sand, under glass, or in shade. Trim the shoots to 2 or 3 inches and remove surplus leaves.
Old plants may be cut back hard after flowering and with a little sur face fertilizer feeding will build up and come again for 2 or 3 years. The flowers get progressively smaller as they age.
When To Plant Snap Dragons
Snapdragons can be planted in both spring and fall, depending on where you live. In northern climates, it’s best to plant them in early spring when the ground is still cool. In southern climates, they can also be planted in late summer or early fall for a winter flowering season.
Snap Dragons Need Full Sun Snap dragons do best in full sun areas with at least 6 hours of direct sunlight each day. They prefer well-drained soil that has been amended with compost or other organic material prior to planting. Make sure the soil is moist but not waterlogged; if you find it difficult to keep the soil moist, consider adding a layer of mulch around your plants.
Fertilizing Your Snap Dragons If you want your snap dragons to produce plenty of flowers, make sure they are fertilized regularly during their blooming period. A light application of a balanced fertilizer every two weeks will help ensure that they receive all the nutrients they need for healthy growth and blooming. Be sure not to over-fertilize; too much fertilizer can burn the roots and damage the plant’s health. Watering Your Snap Dragons Snapdragons need consistent watering throughout their growing season; aim for about 1 inch per week during hot weather and less when temperatures are cooler. During periods of drought or extreme heat, increase your waterings slightly so that your plants don’t dry out or become stressed from lack of water.
With just a few simple steps, you can have an abundant crop of snapdragons in no time! From planting at the right time and providing ample sunlight to fertilizing regularly and keeping them watered consistently, there are several key steps involved in cultivating this beautiful flower successfully. By following these guidelines carefully, you’ll be rewarded with an abundance of gorgeous blooms all season long.
