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Mixed Colour Seeds

februarysgirlfebruarysgirl Posts: 835
in Plants
This year I bought some phlox Creme Brulee seedlings which are a mixture of colours. Whilst all of them are lovely, I prefer some of the colours over the others. One of them is various shades of purple and cream which I would really love to have more of but if I were to buy a packet of seeds, there's no guarantee that any purple ones would come up. If I were to harvest the seeds of the predominantly purple ones, would they come out with the same colouring or, because they're a mixed colour variety, could they come out with random colouring?

Posts

  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    Did you notice any difference in colour of stems or veins in the seedlings?  If yes, the darker/ reddish stems are more likely to produce the darker coloured blooms.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    I think if you collect seeds from the colour that you like, you'll probably get a mixture but leaning more towards that colour because you know that one (at least) of the parents is, but it's not by any means guaranteed.

    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • februarysgirlfebruarysgirl Posts: 835
    @B3 The stems all look identical.

    @JennyJ Think I'll just have to sow and see and keep my fingers crossed.
  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    Oh well, you'll have to trust to luck then😊
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    @februarysgirl If you keep seed from sweet peas there will probably be more purple ones as it is the dominant gene. I think this applies to other plants too but not sure about Phlox.
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • februarysgirlfebruarysgirl Posts: 835
    @GardenerSuze That's really interesting, thanks!
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