Sensational Cosmos
While some gardeners prefer mainly annuals or all perennials, if you are like me you like to have a mix of both. Perennials are the mainstay of my garden, but I find that the garden looks a little fresher and brighter when I intermingle some of the many beautiful annuals (considered perennials in warmer climates) that are available, and grow them alongside my perennials.
Sensational cosmos is at the top of my “must get these before they disappear” list each spring for shopping at the nurseries, a spot they share with cleome.
Cosmos appears delicate but it is a sturdy customer, as you will find out when you eventually dig out the plant roots at the end of the growing season.
While there are shorter versions of the plants out there, and I have a few of these in my garden, I prefer the tall hybrids. They usually reach a height of about five feet and reach over three to four feet around. This is due in part to the fact that I plant them in sets of three to five, and as a cluster they take up a fair bit of space when they mature.
They do tend to be a bit leggy. You need to provide support for them early in the season, but you can be discreet about this. You could invest in a few of those nice green metal stakes that have the three-to-five-inch loops at the top side. Even one is a help, used judiciously to support one of the main stems. Another trick is to tie each of the stems to a neighbour and in this way use the stems as a kind of mutual support for one another.
The flowers are plentiful, and begin opening in early to mid-June. They continue to show until late September in my zone 3 region. They grow well year after year in the full sun. I have placed some of the shorter varieties in fairly dry, hot location facing south, against a white stucco wall, and so far they are holding their own.
While I do buy and plant cosmos every year, I also find cosmos coming up reliably from its own seeds in different places in my garden. I usually let these home-grown plants stay where they are, but I don’t mind moving them when I have a bit of spare time.
Surprisingly, the blooms hold up decently when displayed as cut flowers, and they add a real elegance to the display. Another great aspect about cosmos is their longevity. When the other plants are starting to bed down for the winter, cosmos will keep blooming through the fall, right up until the first hard frost.
Location: Home Garden
Photo & Text: NK
Copyright: cookiebuxton.com
