Common, Borage Seed

Common Borage Seed

Cucumber-flavored blue flowers make edible garnishing effortless
Hundreds of starry blooms appear across a long season
Easy annual plants readily self-sow in favorable sites
Use flowers in salads, drinks, ice cubes, and desserts

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Key Attributes

Botanical Name

Borago officinalis

Days to maturity

50 Days

Sun

Full Sun

Packet

50 Seeds

About Common, Borage Seed, Borage Seed

Borage is a mounded plant that produces beautiful blue flowers that are great for using as a garnish for different dishes or drinks. This large variety is a self seeding annual that bears hundreds of small edible flowers, mostly blue and some pink, over a long harvest. Borage has a mild cucumber flavor that is great for salads and garnishes. Medicinal: Seed oil is a rich source of gamma-linolenic acid.

Growing details

Planting

Sow Depth

1/4"

Days to Germination

5–15 days

In-row plant spacing

18-24"

Plant profile

Life Cycle

Annual

Plant Height

30 inches

Growth Habits

Upright

Seed & variety

Seeds Per Ounce

1,400

Color

Blue

Seed Type

Open Pollinated

Growing Season

Cool-Season Crop

Before Planting

Before planting Borage, select a full-sun to lightly shaded site with fertile, well-drained soil that retains moderate moisture. Work compost into the bed and prepare a fine, weed-free surface for the usually small seed. Plan convenient irrigation, and use containers or barriers before planting if borage may spread aggressively.

Planting

Direct sow borage about 1/4–1/2 inch deep after frost, or start in individual cells 3–4 weeks earlier. Maintain 65–75°F and moderate moisture until emergence. Transplant while young because the taproot dislikes disturbance. Thin plants to 12–18 inches apart and make small succession sowings for continued tender leaves and flowers.

Watering

Maintain steady root-zone moisture around borage, especially during active leaf growth. Water before plants wilt, but avoid standing water and overhead irrigation late in the day.

Fertilizer

Apply light, regular nutrition to borage during vigorous growth, especially in containers. Keep nitrogen moderate and stop feeding when plants become dormant or growth slows.

Harvesting

Pick young borage leaves before their hairs become coarse, using gloves if the bristles irritate skin. Harvest flowers just after they open, preferably after dew dries, and use them promptly. Cut stems above a node for regrowth; allow selected seed heads to dry only when reseeding is wanted.

Tips

Keep borage compact by harvesting or pinching often. Container plants may need occasional repotting, while tender perennials can be moved indoors before frost for continued growth.

Pests & Diseases

Borage most often develops powdery or downy mildew late in crowded, humid plantings. White surface growth differs from yellow patches with gray growth underneath. Thin volunteers, remove the worst leaves, and let foliage dry between waterings. Root rot is uncommon unless the soil remains saturated.

Aphids cluster on borage shoots and flowers, flea beetles pit young leaves, and caterpillars or slugs chew foliage. Inspect leaves before culinary harvest, rinse off aphids, and tolerate limited caterpillar feeding where beneficial insects are present. Use barriers around vulnerable seedlings.