How to Grow Cosmos
Cosmos give you a big bang for your buck. Growing carefree from seed, these annuals (meaning they grow just one year) fill a flowerbed with color and are great cut flowers. Cosmos grow anywhere from 1 foot to 3 feet high, depending on the variety. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Check out your local garden center in spring for cosmos seeds and seedlings. Because they're so fast and easy to grow from seed, however, many nurseries don't carry them as seedlings.
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Choose either Cosmos bipinnatus, which has feathery foliage and large daisy-like flowers in all the ranges of white, pink and red, or Cosmos sulphureus, which has smaller flowers in more brilliant, sunset hues and is drought-resistant. (Cosmos also reseed easily.)
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Plant indoors four to six weeks before your region's average last frost date to get earliest bloom. Otherwise, plant outdoors directly in the soil after the last frost date, 8 inches apart in full sun in average soil.
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Trim spent blooms to encourage a longer bloom period.
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Pull out plants, and discard in fall once frost kills them.
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Tips & Warnings
Cosmos require moderate to little water.
Plant cosmos in groups of at least a dozen to take advantage of their wildflower-like effect.
Cosmos don't thrive in overly rich soil. They'll produce lots of tall foliage but fewer flowers.
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Comments
View all 6 Comments-
can I use dead head seeds to grow cosmos next year the same as you can do with marigolds.
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When can you plant cosmos? Do i need to wait till spring? or can I plant now (Early autumn where I am right now)?
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twbigdogsgirl
Jun 19, 2008
Oh yeah, if you let the dead headed flowers lay in the flower bed, they will come back for one or two more years. -
twbigdogsgirl
Jun 19, 2008
Oh yeah, if you let the dead headed flowers lay in the flower bed, they will come back for one or two more years.
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twbigdogsgirl
Jun 19, 2008
Dead heading those blooms will insure that it continues to bloom. My husband and I call them "blooming idiots" because the just keep right on blooming. They come in two different sizes, miniature and the regular size. Be sure you have lots of room if you plant the regular as they grow quite tall and tend to fall over and grow roots where they lay. I have found it very hard to "tie" them up to keep them from falling over, but I just love them.
