Jeanne, I direct sow all my seeds in early spring, mid April, still some freezing nights, but not hard freezes. I plant seeds 1/4 inch deep, 8 inches apart, and keep moist. I had my first batch of seedlings bloom last summer as two-year-olds, just over 70 out of a little over 100 seedlings, and had five bloom as yearlings. I live in zone 6a, recently changed from zone 5b, central Washington. I think that I may try direct sowing some seeds late summer/early fall this year, to see if I can get more bloom in one year. I would be very interested to hear if anyone else has done this in a Northern garden, and how it worked.
