Anise

These are anise seeds - great for baking into crackers and breads in a way that the similarly-flavoured but larger Star Anise can't be.

I had a lot of trouble tracking down a supply of aniseed, so I'm going to try growing some more.

This plug plant pack will be ideal - it came filled with petunia plants - these have been potted on, so I've refilled it with fresh compost. The gel layer underneath will make it easier to keep the seeds moist.

I planted one seed in each plug and clipped the sides together, then covered it with plastic film.

17 April 2010 - the first shoots have appeared in a few of the cells.

That's quicker than I expected - some other umbellifers such as parsley take a long time to germinate -clearly not the same for anise.

11 May 2010 - The seedlings are just looking really sickly and spindly. I don't think they'll stand the handling required to plant them out..

So that's a failure. But I have a plan B - I'll plant some directly into the garden soil - they germinate fast, so I shouldn't lose them amongst the weeds.