Some Common Garden Seeds

by Chris Thomas, Milton UK

14 common garden seeds at low magnification arranged in a spiral

Key to images

1. Althaea sp. (Hollyhock)

2. Scabeous atropurpurea

3. Lupin hybrid

4. Calendula officinalis (Marigold)

5. Echinacea purpurea

6. Coreopsis sp.

7. Passiflora cearulea (Passion flower)

Scale: image diameters equivalent to 7mm

8. Centauria cyanus (Cornflower)

9. Mathiola longipetala (Summer scented stock)

10. Iberis umbellata (Candytuft)

11. Delphinium consolida (Larkspur)

12. Viola x wittrockiana (Pansy)

13. Verbena bonariensis

14. Clematis montana

Images © Chris Thomas

Seeds are a very rewarding subject. If you are not an avid gardener yourself (and I am not) you are likely to know someone who is and can give you a few seeds. My thanks go to Jane and Marcia & Co for contributing to my collection. If all else fails, buy a packet of mixed seeds from any garden centre and prepare to be entranced!

Seeds are best viewed with a low power stereomicroscope or with a hand lens. Since they are easily related to by most people, they are also good subjects for demonstrations that will be guaranteed to ensure a further supply of material.

The above pictures were taken with a Unilink adaptor linked to a digital camera focussed at infinity and placed in the eyepiece tube of a simple ex-Open University low power stereomicroscope. I get vignetting but am able to live with it especially as the image size in pixels for Internet pictures is not great.

Other Micscape contributions with images of seeds are:

You are heartily invited to visit my site at

http://homepages.tesco.net/~chris.jrthomas/


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Published in the May 2003 edition of Micscape Magazine.

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