Cornfield Annuals Seed Mix

Our Cornfield Annuals Seed Mix provides fast growing native annuals that create a bright, attractive display of colour loved by pollinators. They are called Cornfield Annuals as these were traditionally the ‘weed’ plants of arable farmland. Today, many farmers leave strips of these plants around their field edges to encourage insects and support biodiversity.

All our seeds are true UK native British wildflowers harvested from sites across the UK, most within Cumbria and some from our own meadows. We work with several Wildlife Organisations and take wild seed from their Nature Reserves and other wildlife sites, under a DEFRA permit.

This product is priced per unit (1 gram of seed), and we have a minimum order of 10 units (10 grams) for this seed mix.

Seed species included in this mix:
15% Corn Chamomile (Anthemis arvensis)
10% Common Poppy (Papaver rhoeas)
5% Corn Buttercup (Ranunculus arvensis)
15% Cornflower (Centaurea cyanus)
45% Corn Cockle (Agrostemma githago)
10% Corn Marigold (Glebionis segetum)

Sowing Information
Sowing rate of 2-4g per square metre on to bare soil.
Best time to sow is early Spring (Feb-April) but can be done over winter or into July. For a longer display, sow in staggered batches a few weeks apart. Perfect for creating a vibrant, pollinator-friendly patch that pops through the summer season. Prepare the ground as bare soil. Rake over, weed and de-stone large stones. Rake to create a light aerated seed bed. Sow seeds directly onto the soil surface and they may benefit from a light rake over.
All Cornfield annuals are annual plants, so they only germinate from seed each year. Sow each year or allow the plants to drop their seed onto the ground. Each year your will need to weed out grasses and other plants and disturb the soil to create bare soil. This provides the best conditions for these annual plants. Rake over the soil and create a seed bed and sow the seed directly on to the soil. They may benefit from a light rake over.

These flowers are NOT found in wildflower meadows and are not perennial plants (i.e. they only reproduce from seed). If you sow into grasslands, they may come up in year one but will be out competed over time and eventually disappear.

Flowers usually appear in late May to June. Please be aware that some online suppliers sell cheaper, imported seeds that may not be true UK natives and may not thrive in local conditions.

For orders over 10,000g (10Kg) please contact us for special rates.

Management:
Once the flowers have set seed and dropped their seed we recommend raking over the soil. You will have to keep the weeds down until next year and ensure the area stays open. We recommend managing broadleaved weeds and grass weeds as they out compete the annuals. One option is to collect the seed from the plants once the seed is ripe (usually when goes brown or black). Air dry the seed for 3-4 days and place in a brown paper bag (not plastic). Store over winter somewhere cool, out of the sun and any draughts. Ensure the seeds do not get moist as they can get a fungal issue. In the spring prepare the area to be sown by removing all vegetation and start again with a clean seed bed. Sow into bare soil between Nov to April. By buying our plants/seeds you are supporting British based growers and suppliers who often work with local farmers-businesses. Please be aware some suppliers on the internet bring in plants/seed which are non-native imports and may not be true UK native plants/seeds. Whilst these may be cheaper, they may not be true UK native plants and may not be suited to our environment.

PLEASE NOTE – We offer free sowing & management advice with every order.