Hello! I was given some chinese forget-me-not seeds but have never cared for such flowers. I read everywhere that if planted in the summer, myosotis (same thing?) will flower the following spring. Does this mean they require a cooler dormant period in between? How do I care for this plant if I live in Montreal with extremely cold winters? Should I keep it indoors all the time? If so, how do I care for it and get it to flower? If anyone could quickly walk me through the steps, from seed to flower, I would be delighted. Thank you!
Cynoglossum and Myosotis are plants of different genera, but both in the Boraginaceae. Myosotis are commonly called forget-me-nots and Cynoglossum also sometime take this common name. I don't have any actual experience growing them in a climate like yours. I don't know what type you have but I would guess Cynoglossum amabile, known as Chinese forget-me-not. This is a biennial plant. They do flower the first season if they have enough time. In areas colder than zone 6 they can be started indoors before frost and planted out after frost. That should work in Montreal. They like cool weather, so an early start is probably a good idea to get the most flowers you can before the summer heat.
Thank you Eric! Yes they are Cynoglossum, I checked. Does that mean I can't have them in pots? If I just throw the pot outside after frost, I doubt the plant will survive the -45 Celsius weather. I have nowhere to plant them in soil. What would you recommend?
Because they flower in the first year, you can grow them as an annual. You can plant them in the Spring a month or so before last Spring frost and plant them out after the frost. You can try to grow them indoors, but they like cool weather and it can be very difficult to provide for this type of plant indoors. Something like a cool greenhouse, very bright, cool sunroom might work.
