So I have bought some seeds...

[NachoAddict]

I have never in all my life intentionally grown a plant.

I have a flower bed about 10 foot long and on or two feet wide that I want to grow some flowers in. I have bought 40 Anemone bulbs, 50 Poppy Giant Double Peony seeds, 50 Poppy Angels Choir seeds and 600 Nigella Damascena seeds.

My intentions are to stick the bulbs in the ground and scatter the seeds when they arrive and hope for the best. Will this work?

I might throw some tulip and Allium bulbs in there too.

Am I going to get some flowers?

The peony seeds take about 3 years to flower but the rest should be fine. One of the problems for a first time gardener is that seeds will emerge the same time as weeds and it is not always possible to tell the difference. It won't be a problem with the anemone as they are quite distinctive.

My tip would be to rake over the soil and plant the anemone first. Water the ground and then with a stick mark out some large circles. Scatter your seeds in alternating circles (that is poppy in a circle, Nigella in a different circle) leaving about 2 inches circumference. When the seeds emerge you will be able to identify which are your seeds and which are weeds.

Thinning out is likely to be necessary with so many seeds.. There is a temptation to think that when lots of seeds emerge there will be a survival of the fittest. This is not always the case and overcrowding at this stage can lead to sudden collapse of everything, I would just discard the weekest looking ones to begin with. As the weather warms and the plants get stronger, if you still need to thin you can either discard or transfer to gaps.

Lots of success in seeds depends on your soil. The plants you have described thrive in poor soil, so don't be tempted to feed the soil. They also like quite dry conditions, once they are established.

Thank you for the advice, I hadn't even thought aboyt weeding or thinning out. I was literally hoping to chuck them on and have beautiful flowers.

I like the circle idea, that will make life easier.

If I were to put tulip and allium bulbs in too would they go with the ones I have got?

I chucked nigella seeds around, it totally worked. A bit too well tbh, they got everywhere this year!

Allium are wonderful. I got some giant ones from RHS and they were stunning. Bees went nuts for them too!

Thats reassuring to know. I just want a bit of colour. I bet the bloody dog digs them all up though.

So many lovely flowers I might just turn the grass into a meadow

I Buy lots of canes from the £1 shop, snap them in half and poke them in the ground to stop the neighbour's cats. I think tulips and aliums would be great. Also erythronium and Fritallaria are stunning and come back and multiply each year.

Oh the cats! This street is swarming with them and I have one of my own, I didnt realise they dig up seeds.

I wilk Google ghose plants I haven't seen them before.

Another £1 shop tip for keeping cats and dogs off the garden is to buy their expanding trellis and lay it on the ground. The willow ones snap quite easily to fit the areas and they don't look unattractive.

If you have Wilko near you, they do really cheap plants which are excellent value.

Ohh we do have wilkos I will pop in.

I am so impatient though it will kill me waiting for spring to see if they have worked out.

Gardening is great therapy for impatience!

Wilko are very seasonal with plants, I find. Tons of cheap bedding in quite a small window, then that's it.

Morrison's are pretty good for cheap stuff too.