Winter is the time to plant fragrant snapdragons

Winter has two faces, some days cold and mean, others sunny and friendly. Just as it is with dragons. Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize power, strength, and good luck, but only for people found deserving of good fortune who are truly worthy of it. The dragon was an often-used symbol of strength by Chinese emperors. Even today to pay someone the highest compliment is to call them a dragon.

Dragons in Western culture are not so nice. In Western culture, the dragon is a monstrous winged terror, the enemy of good men and fair maidens. The dragon is meant to be slain by brave knights. Kill a dragon and become a saint like Saint George, the dragon slayer. Evil dragons all, except for the rather good Welsh dragon, which also is really not a dragon. Dragons have four legs, and the Welsh dragon has only two, so it is properly called a wyvern.

Whether it is wyvern or dragon, fire-breathing or friendly, winter is the time for dragons in another sense. It is time to get ready to plant snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus). These easy-to-grow annuals are named for their flowers’ playful resemblance to a dragon’s snapping mouth. The fragrant flowers bloom for a long time and do well in cooler weather. Snapdragons come in all sizes, so you can use the dwarf-sized snapdragons as an annual ground cover or to edge a border. They do well as potted flowers, and the trailing type can be used in hanging baskets and window boxes. The tall spires of the taller snapdragons give the garden visual height. Try mixing rocket-type snapdragons with low-growing annuals such as alyssum. The taller snapdragons even make long-lived, fragrant cut flowers.

To grow your own snapdragons, sow the tiny seeds indoors about eight to 10 weeks before you want to set out the plants. For better germination some gardeners pre-chill the seeds for 48 hours in the freezer. Sow your seeds in flats or trays of seed starter mix or vermiculite. Because snapdragon seeds need light to germinate, do not bury the seeds at all, but sow them on the surface of your flats or trays. To prevent washing the seeds away, gently water from the bottom by soaking the trays in water. Snapdragons germinate in 10 to 20 days and should bloom within 80 to 100 days from sowing.

Once the snapdragon plants have four to six leaves, pinch them back to encourage bushier plants with more flowers. Harden off the seedlings before transplanting them by putting them in a sheltered outdoor area every day for a week. Bring them in at night.

Snapdragons grow best in well-drained soil in full sun or light shade. They come in three basic heights: the dwarfs at six to eight inches tall, the medium height growing from 15 to 30 inches high, and the stately tall class that grows from 30 inches to a towering 48 inches.

Pick off or deadhead old, faded flowers to encourage repeat blooming. You can even cut them back midseason and give a generous side dressing of organic fertilizer for a second flush of bloom in late summer. Snapdragons will self-sow where they are happy, so you may find volunteers in next year’s garden.

You can save your own snapdragon seeds from non-hybrid varieties. Let the flowers mature and seed pods develop. Tie a bag around the ripening pod to catch the delicate seeds. Cut the ripened pod and bag off, and shake the seeds free into the bag.

Besides flowers, snapdragons are grown for the edible oil extracted from the seeds, especially in Russia. The flowers can also be used to dye cloth green. And some cultures make a poultice from the leaves.

But for most of us, snapdragons are just a fun flower with a funny name.

Though in the 1700s, snapdragon was the name of a Christmas game where you plucked raisins from burning brandy and ate the still-burning raisins.

I would rather face a wyvern.