Snapdragons! All The Secrets You Need To Know To Grow Easily

Growing Snapdragons can be intimidating, but don’t worry! I’m here for every step. Snapdragons can be purchased as a plant start, but you will have limited options and varieties. If you are willing to start them from seeds you have so many beautiful options and colors that you never see at the store or rarely anywhere else. If you are not going to start from seeds you can skip to step 8.

1. When to Plant: Start Indoors (8-10 weeks before the last frost date)

• Time to start: Snapdragons are typically started indoors 8-10 weeks before the last frost in your area.
• Supplies you’ll need:
  • Snapdragon seeds
  • Seed starting trays or containers that have drainage holes
  • Seed starting mix or potting soil
  • A grow light- and bright window will not be enough light and will produce poor seedlings. 
  • Spray bottle

2. Prepare Your Containers

• Wet your soil until the soil is wet enough that it holds it shape if you squeeze it, but not so wet that water will drip out if soil is squeezed
• Fill your seed starting tray/ pots with soil

3. Plant the Seeds

• Snapdragon seeds are TINY so just need to sprinkle the snapdragon seeds on the surface of the soil.
• Spray the seeds and surface of the soil with water
• Place the seed starting tray under your grow light
• Snapdragon seeds need light to germinate, so don’t cover them with soil.

4. Provide the Right Environment

• Moisture: Now that you have planted your seeds, you must keep them moist. If they dry out, they will not germinate (sprout). Regularly spray the seeds with water. 

Light: Place the trays under grow lights or in a bright spot (but not in direct sunlight yet). You want at least 12-14 hours of light per day to ensure healthy seedlings.

5. Watering

• Keep the soil lightly moist but not soaked. Use a mist or a fine spray to avoid disturbing the seeds.
• Once your snapdragons have grown 2-3 sets of leaves you can start bottom watering. This means you put water in the bottom of the container and allow the roots to soak up the water. When you water your plants do not let the plants sit in water for more than an hour. Bottom watering will prevent disease and help the plant grow stronger roots. 
• You will want holes in the bottom of your containers to prevent waterlogging and it will allow the plants to soak up water.

6. Germination

Snapdragon seeds take 10-14 days to germinate. Be patient! I know it is hard to wait, but continue to keep the soil moist and warm.

7. Transplanting and Hardening Off

• Once the seedlings have a couple of sets of leaves, they can be transplanted into your garden after they have been hardened off. Do not skip this step. Your transplants can burn up from the sun, or die in the cold nights because they are not used to the intense sun and temperatures of outside. 
• Hardening off: Around a week before planting outside, begin hardening off the seedlings by gradually exposing them to outdoor conditions. In the morning sun, set out your plants for 1-2 hours, then bring them back inside. The next day for 3-4 hours, the next day 5-6, ect. 
• Make sure your night temperatures will not be lower than 32 degrees, or your plants will die.

8. Planting Outdoors

• Don’t plant your transplants out until after your last frost date. (This can be found with a simple google search of your location). Wait until night temperatures do not go lower than 32 degrees. I wait until night temperatures are not lower than 40 to be safe. 
• Choose a spot with well-draining soil and full sun to partial shade.
• Prepare your soil by losing the dirt, adding composts, and any other soil amenities you need for your garden. 
• Space the seedlings about 8-12 inches apart, depending on the variety. I plant my snapdragons 9 inches apart. I am able to plant them on the closer side because of our dry climate and I am cutting the flowers regularly, keeping the plant small.

9. Pinching

• Pinching your plant is best if you are using snapdragons as cut flowers, or want a more bushy looking plant. 
• Pinching your plant is simply cutting or “pinching” the top of the plant off. Then the plant has 4-5 sets of leaves cut off the top set of leaves. As a result the plant will create 2 main stems and you will get more flowers and longer stems from pinching.

10. Care After Planting and Harvesting

• Deep water your snapdragons every few days. How much to water your plant will depend on your climate and soil. 
• Depending on your soils you may want to fertilize once or twice a month with a liquid fertilizer. My soil is low in nitrogen so I use a nitrogen heavy liquid fertilizer for the first month or two and then stop for the rest of the summer. 
• Harvest flowers when the bottom 2-3 flowers are blooming, but not the top blooms. This will allow for the longest vase life. 
• Snip off dead flowers to encourage the plant to continue blooming.

Commonly Asked Questions:

• Are snapdragons easy to grow? Yes! I think the hardest part is remembering to start the plants 10 weeks before your last frost date, but if you are going to start from started plants then it will be even easier.
• Can I direct sow snapdragons seeds? It is not suggested because they are slow growers in the beginning. I have had a few snapdragon plants grow on their own in my garden, but they are always small and I only get 2-3 stems off them. 
• How to keep snapdragons bloom? The goal of a plant is to make seeds. Because of this, on most plants if you continue to cut the blooms off before the plant makes seeds it will continue to grow more and more seeds. If you want blooms all summer, keep cutting those flowers before they go to seed.
• How far apart to plant snapdragons? 9 inches
• How to grow snapdragons in pots? Growing snapdragons in pots is the same as growing them in the ground. You can plant them a little close as long as you regularly fertilizer the pot. 
• How long does it take to grow snapdragons from seed? It will take about 105-115 days for a snapdragon seed to grow to maturity and start producing flowers.
• What is the secret to growing snapdragons? No real secrets! Just takes a long time to grow, and the seeds are tiny!

As Always,
Grow flowers to heal your soul,

Beth