Does anyone here grow the Siberian Wallflowers as early blooming nectar plants for the spring Monarchs? I saw these plants blooming in the nursery this spring and just had to try growing some for their wonderful fragrance. As it turns out, they are reportedly used by spring migrating Monarchs as a source of nectar.

After seeing and smelling them, I googled the plant and read up on it. In my zone 7b, it can be evergreen through the winter months, blooming the second growing season. I bought seed and started some seedlings about three months ago, just to see how they'd do here. The seedlings looked pretty puny during the hot summer but with cooler days and nights now, they are perking up and beginning to grow. I'm so looking forward to seeing the blooms come spring.

I'd never heard of it before seeing it this spring. The fragrance is to die for. If it blooms for me, I don't think I'll ever be without them again AND especially since they're an acceptable nectar source for the early Monarchs. Now having blooms on the greenhouse tropical milkweed in early spring won't be as critical, with these blooms to fall back on.

I've provided a link to the thread on GardenWeb's 'Winter Sowing' forum, if you'd like to read some comments about this plant. There is also a link in one of the posts to a short youtube video showing a Monarch feeding on the blooms of the Siberian Wallflower.

If you've grown this plant, will you tell us of your experience.

Mary

Siberian Wallflower (Cheiranthus allionii) seedlings - Oct 1, 2011 - Biennial - 20 inch pot - seedlings about 3 months old

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Here is a link that might be useful: Siberian Wallflowers provide nectar for spring Monarchs