Seeds that would not grow - rudbekia, staircase and scabious black night

Examples of seedlings that did perform

It is very tempting when covering one's gardening activities, to focus on the joys, the triumphs, the real successes.  Sometimes I feature a real disappointment, generally involving a slug or my blundering mother.  But today I think is the moment to focus on the real disasters, growing experiences I can take absolutely no swell of pride from.  Lets focus on all the seed I planted which didn't bother to come up, at all.

I have been keeping the barren little pots of soil in the garage indefinitely in the hope that something might eventually find it fit to make an appearance, but this weekend I officially gave up and have evicted them.  If anything chooses to germinate now it will be in the middle of my veg bed and I won't be best pleased.

Staircase: I bought these after seeing them in a garden I visited last summer.  Strange plants these, with the stalk emerging from the centre of the flower below giving the appearance of flower balls pierced by a large stick.  Or it would, had a single one of the seeds I sowed germinated.  I sowed these ages ago, they were amongst the first probably in February time and not one seed from the two pots ever germinated.

I know I have included pictures of growing seedlings but empty pots of soil just aren't that interesting

Rudbekia: Again I sowed two pots of these at the same time as my first batch of sunflowers.  Sunflowers have germinated and been eaten, been sowed, germinated and are several inches tall and still not one rudbekia has germinated.  I even did another pot and stuck it outside in case the balmy temperatures in the garage had prevented germination, but no.  However one gets these to grow, Im clearly not doing it.

Scabious Black night: I suspected I would have a problem here as I collected these myself and then sowed them at the same time as some shop bought ones of a different colour.  They did not look the same so whatever I collected I don't think was the seed.  Oops.

Tomato Losetto: I sowed three little pots of these and kept them on my bedroom windowsill.  Nothing ever grew.  I suspect the reason these seeds were being given away free is that they were old and therefore they haven't germinated.  That could just be me being cynical, but I have my suspicions.

Aquilegia: I really don't know what I did wrong here but not only have seedlings in my pots been very few and far between, but they have taken forever.  I can't help but notice that plants in the garden have germinated, grown and flowered in the time it has taken mine to pop up a few little leaves.  Maybe they shouldn't have been grown indoors?  I don't know but these have truly been a disaster.  Hopefully the seed I have left will still be good for next year and I can have another go.

The rest of the pot graveyard belonged to zinnia seeds that didn't ever sprout.  However to focus on these would be wrong I feel because they are picky and require spacious accomodation when growing.  Its very easy to spot a seed that hasn't germinated when it is the only one in the pot, less so when it is amongst others.

One of the other seeds I have found difficult to grow is panicular elegans,  I have got a few seedlings, but it has not been keen.  Also I definitely think sowing sweet peas needs to be done early.  My very last batch produced a success rate of less than fifty percent, where as my earlier sowings were more around ninety percent.