Cosmos are freely flowering annual plants that are easy to grow and reach full maturity within two months. If you’re trying to find a flower which will stay in bloom for months and may be grown by simply scattering seeds after any danger of frost, cosmos are an excellent choice. The flowers sit atop long slender stems and form a cloud of color that not only looks attractive throughout the summer but also attract bees, butterflies, and birds to your garden.

Cosmos are quintessential cottage garden flowers and blend well with almost everything. The taller varieties look good within the middle or rear of the border, with spiky flowers like agastache and goat’s beard, and with flowers like coneflowers and black-eyed Susans. Shorter varieties make very colorful, airy edging plants.

Cosmos flowers are daisy-like, with ray florets surrounding the middle disc of florets during a shallow cup. there’s a broad range of colours and more per annum . The leaves grow opposite and are either deeply lobed, pinnate, or bipinnate and feathery, counting on the variability . Since few pests bother cosmos, the plants look good all season.

How to Grow Cosmos

Cosmos grow easily in beds and make great cut flowers. When established, the plants can handle drought, poor soil conditions, and general neglect. They even self-sow. (Be careful, as Cosmos sulphureus is taken into account invasive within the southeast. ask your local county agent if you’ve got any questions.) this is often a very low-maintenance plant.

While some pests, like aphids, flea beetles, and thrips, do enjoy cosmos, they’re easy to regulate with a robust stray of water or insecticidal soap. Aster yellow, bacterial wilt, and mildew can also affect cosmos. Space plants accordingly to make sure good airflow to avoid diseases.

Light

For the simplest flowering, choose a site that gets full sun. Cosmos will grow in partial shade but will have fewer blooms and are less vigorous when planted in shady areas. They thrive under the uninterrupted full sun within the hottest conditions. These plants are native to the arid regions of Mexico and Central and South America, in order that they will thrive in conditions that mimic those found in these regions.

Soil

Cosmos plants prefer neutral to slightly acidic soil although they’re going to grow in poor soil where many other flowering plants languish. Cosmos perform best in medium moisture, well-drained soils, but they’re going to perform adequately even in dry soils. Avoid soils that are too rich, which may cause the plants to urge too tall and flop over. you’ll prevent this from staking the plants or growing them close enough to other plants which will support them.

Water

Once established, you ought to not got to water your cosmos plants in the least unless there’s a protracted drought. Where water is restricted, these are the last plants that need irrigation.

Temperature and Humidity

Hot weather is right for the cosmos, and that they thrive under nearly any humidity level.

Fertilizer

Unless your plants seem to be struggling, there’s no need for fertilizer. Cosmos can handle poor soil, and fertilizing can even have a negative impact. an excessive amount of fertilizer can create strong plants with many foliage—but few blooms.

Pruning

The only real maintenance cosmos plants need is deadheading which can prolong the flowering season. If you fall behind, simply shear the plants by about one-third, when most of the flowers have faded. This produces a second flush of leaves and flowers.

Propagating Cosmos

These plants readily self-seed, and it’s also easy to gather the dried seeds at the top of the season to save lots for next year. Remember that seeds from hybrid varieties might not “come true” to the parent plant and should produce plants that revert to the species.

Growing From Seeds

Although nursery seedlings are available, cosmos are very easy to grow from seeds that it makes little sense to overspend by buying nursery plants. you’ll start seeds indoors, four to 6 weeks before the last frost, but cosmos sown outdoors directly within the garden will quickly catch up. Cosmos typically germinate in 7–21 days at 75 degrees Fahrenheit, followed by flowering in about 50–60 days.

Seed packets usually recommend precise spacing, like at two-foot intervals, but you’ll get a far better display if you merely scatter the seeds and let the plants support one another as they grow. you’ll always thin if you would like to, moving the additional plants to a different a part of the garden.

Wait until all danger of frost has passed before sowing or transplanting outdoors. Cosmos grow very quickly but are often killed by a late frost, so don’t rush it.

Varieties of Cosmos

There are two sorts of cosmos typically grown in gardens. The Cosmos sulphureus is native to Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. With golden yellow blooms, it’s very drought tolerant and loves weather. The plant grows 2 to six feet tall and comes in double and semi-double flowers. a number of the newer cultivars tend to be shorter, more orangy, and with smaller flowers.

Cosmos bipinnatus are the colorful daisy-like flowers that are available white, pinks, reds, and orange. At one to four feet, they’re shorter than C. suphureus, and are available in several popular hybrid series. Although they’re almost as heat tolerant as Cosmos sulphureus, C. bipinnatus will grow well in only about any sunny space.

Some popular sorts of cosmos include:

• ‘Bright Lights’ Mix: a mix of exuberant yellows, oranges, and reds
• ‘Cosmic Orange’: an excellent , semi-double orange flower with great drought tolerance
• Peppermint Candy: an award-winning variety with petals splashed in magenta and white
• Seashells Series: a reasonably mixture of pastel colors, with distinctive tubular petals
• Chocolate Cosmos (Cosmos atrosanguineus): The red flowers do indeed smell like chocolate. this is often a perennial that’s hardy to USDA Zone 7, but it’s far more finicky than the annual cosmos. It grows from tubers, very similar to dahlias.