Forget-Me-Not (Myosotis sylvatica) make excellent indoor container plants, requiring little care to maintain their gray-green foliage and clusters of tiny, light-blue flowers that appear throughout spring and early summer. The plants perform best in moist but well-drained soil. So a light standard potting mix works well. Because Forget-Me-Not requires plenty of air circulation, grow each plant individually in its own 12-inch/-30 cm-diameter container with bottom drainage holes. The plants are pest-resistant and even grow in nutrient-poor soil. So fertilizing them isn't necessary. Forget-Me-Not is hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3 through 8.
Growing Conditions and General Care
Place Forget-Me-Not in a window where they receive full or partial sunlight.
Water the soil deeply when its top 3 inches (7.5 cm) feels dry to your touch, watering until the water drips through the bottom of the pots. Don't allow the plants to stand in water. Reduce watering to about once or twice each month in winter while the plants are dormant. Resume regular watering in spring.
Remove the plants' spent or old flowers at their stems, pinching them off with your fingernails. Then, throw away the removed flowers. Removing spent flowers encourages new blooms to form.
Fertilize the Forget-Me-Not once each month only if their leaves appear wilted or yellow or the plants grow very slowly during spring or summer. Mix one teaspoon of 5-10-10 water-soluble fertilizer with 1 gallon of water. Use the mixture to fertilize the plants in place of one watering session, applying only the amount you usually would use to water the plants. Don't feed during winter while the plants are dormant.
Trim off all dead foliage and stems throughout the growing season and during winter after the plants die back. Use pruning shears or scissors for the task.
Propagation
If starting off Forget-Me-Not and other Myosotis plants indoors, then start about two months in advance. The seeds of Forget-Me-Not should be sown in vermiculite. It will take from one to four weeks to germinate at 64 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit (18 to 20 degrees Celsius) in the dark. It is necessary to water the Forget-Me-Nots from below to stop them rotting once seedlings are ready to transplant into the garden and grow about 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) apart.
Pests and Diseases
Insects and diseases are not too common. However, if problems arise, treat early with insecticides or fungicides as appropriate.
Links
- Back to genus Myosotis
- Plantpedia: Browse flowering plants by Scientific Name, Common Name, Genus, Family, USDA Hardiness Zone, or Origin