Once sweet woodruff finishes blooming, it starts developing seeds where those pretty little flowers used to be. Usually, the plant just does its own thing to spread around, but you can definitely take the reins and plant them yourself if you want to expand your garden. Here’s the lowdown on how to get started with sweet woodruff seeds.
Natural Self-Seeding
Left to its own devices, sweet woodruff is a pro at spreading. It gets the job done in two ways: by sending out underground runners and by dropping its seeds. When the seeds are ripe, they just tumble to the ground and start new little plant babies right next to the parent. Before you know it, you’ve got a lush, green carpet covering the forest floor (or your backyard!).
Gathering Your Seeds
After the blooming season wraps up in May, you’ll see the seeds forming at the tips of the stems. If you want to get your hands on some, you have two easy options:
- Harvest them directly from existing plants.
- Pick up a packet at your local garden center.
How to Sow the Seeds
If you’re looking to add some sweet woodruff to your garden, your best bet is to sow the seeds directly into their permanent spot. Unlike a lot of other plants, I wouldn’t recommend starting these in pots first. Their roots are incredibly delicate, and they really don’t like being moved—you’ll likely end up damaging them during transplanting.
Just tuck the seeds about half an inch deep into the soil and cover them lightly. Keep the area consistently moist. As long as they get a good “chill” from the winter weather, you should see little sprouts popping up within a few weeks. By next spring, they’ll be fully established plants.
Timing is Everything
The best time to get your seeds in the ground is during the fall—ideally between September and November, before the ground freezes solid. Sweet woodruff is what we call a “cold germinator.” This means the seeds actually *need* a period of freezing temperatures to wake up and start growing. Without that winter chill, they’ll just stay dormant.
Patience Pays Off at Harvest
Even though your fall-planted woodruff might look big enough to harvest by the following spring, try to hold back a bit during that first year. You want to give the plants a chance to really settle in and start spreading on their own. If you really need some for a recipe, just take a tiny bit and leave plenty of stems behind so the plant can keep doing its thing!
