Cornflowers are brilliant for your country garden… they are easy to grow and good for cutting. Bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects love them too. It’s time to collect the seed now. Choose a dry sunny day and collect the seed heads when they are ripe… they will be a pale straw like colour.
Break open the capsule with your fingers and discard the casing and any damaged seeds. Cornflower seeds are firm and quite large and easy to handle with what look like little whiskers at one end.
You will be left with small shiny bullet shaped seeds with bristles at one end.
You can sow the seed now, in September or even in October if it’s mild. Alternatively wait until next year then sow in February, March or April. Like many hardy annuals, autumn sown cornflowers usually make stronger, better plants and will start flowering earlier next year. You could do what I do and sow in autumn and spring. I think that’s called hedging your bets!
If you decide to keep some seed to sow later on just save it in paper envelopes in a cool dry place. If you would like to make your own seed packets then have a look at my post on Seed Collection and Storage. Some people say it’s best to keep seeds in a fridge but I find that a cool dry shed is fine. Seed often remains viable for several years.
If you’d rather buy fresh seeds then you’re in luck… I have some for sale in the SHOP here. If you’d like to take a look you’ll find them in the Hardy Annual Category. I love ‘Double Blue Cornflowers’, the pink mixture called ‘Classic Romantic’ and the darkly dramatic ‘Black Ball’ too.
Happy Gardening! 
