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.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Cosmos Seeds
• Garden Spades
• Garden Trowels
• Watering Cans

1. 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.

2. 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.)

3. 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.

4. Trim spent blooms to encourage a longer bloom period.

5. Pull out plants, and discard in fall once frost kills them.

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.

[twbigdogsgirl]

on 6/19/2008 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]

on 6/19/2008 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.