How to Grow Nemophila Menziesii

Native to California but hardy throughout most of the United States, Nemophila menziesii is commonly called baby blue eyes. It's a spring-blooming annual, growing just 12 inches high. In the wild it blooms before taller varieties of prairie plants, but soon succumbs to the hot temperatures of summer. Taller-growing prairie wildflowers and grasses contribute to its demise, but not before baby blue eyes produces a crop of seeds that will grow and bloom the following spring. Add baby blue eyes to a naturalized prairie or meadow garden for color early in the year, or use it as a border in a shady garden, where it will last throughout the growing season until frost kills it in autumn.

Rototiller or shovel
Garden rake or hoe
Hose nozzle sprayer

Instructions

- 1
  Pick a spot in partial shade or filtered sun with average, well-drained soil. Baby blue eyes prefers cool, moist locations with sandy soil, but will grow in drier and heavier soil as long as the soil drains promptly.
- 2
  Loosen the soil in the planting bed by tilling or turning it over with a shovel. Smooth the surface of the planting bed with a garden rake or hoe.
- 3
  Broadcast seeds of baby blue eyes by hand in very early spring. Rough up the surface of the ground gently using a garden rake, then smooth out the soil.
- 4
  Water the planting bed with a hose nozzle set to a fine mist setting. Keep the seedbed moist by misting it daily until the plants germinate in approximately seven to 30 days. Spring rains will provide all the moisture they need, except during unseasonal droughts.
- 5
  Thin the seedlings when they're about 3 inches high, so the remaining plants stand about 6 inches apart in all directions.

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