These stunning flowers grow tall, deep carmine purple blooms above delicate, bright green foliage. Half-hardy in the UK down to -5°C.
Add these stunning, carmine purple flowers to your garden or outdoor container. Growing up to 65cm tall on stems above their delicate foliage, these large flowers are lovely as part of an outdoor scheme or for growing your own flowers to cut and bring indoors. Their open, daisy-like shape is welcoming to pollinators too, so use these to bring wildlife to your garden! Their breathtaking shade of bright purple and delicate, fern-like foliage will make this a valuable addition to your garden, and bring admiration from neighbours and wildlife alike.
Annual
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Flower: tall stems
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Foliage spring to autumn, flowering May to October
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Scientific Name
Cosmos bipinnatus 'Apollo Carmine' (double-winged orderly plant, variety: Apollo Carmine)
Common Name
Cosmos, Purple Cosmos, Dwarf Cosmos, Apollo Carmine Cosmos
Origin
Mexico, Guatemala and Costa Rica
Pruning Tips
Deadhead to prolong flowering; when it's coming to the end of the season, let it go to seed to feed the birds and so you can save some for next year!
Wildlife Value
On the RHS' list of Plants for Pollinators, these open flowers will welcome pollinators such as bees with lots of nectar and pollen. They also provide nectar for butterflies like the Monarch butterfly, earning a spot on Butterfly Conservation's Top Butterfly Nectar Plants, and provide forage for other insects too.
Positioning
Place in full sun, preferably with shelter from the wind
Water
Allow the soil to drain and dry out between waters; only water outdoors in very dry weather in the UK.
Soil
Grow in moist, well-draining soil; can grow in most types of soil.
Food
Feed with a liquid fertiliser/ fertiliser high in potash in the flowering season to encourage your cosmos to keep flowering.
Pet-safe
Yes- no toxicity reported, though it's best for the plant and your pets if they don't nibble too much!
Sprouts Top Tips
Used to hotter and drier parts of the world than Britain, your Cosmos will do best in well-draining soil with plenty of light. Make sure it gets a drink if there is a drought. If you want more next year, collect some seeds once it finishes flowering in about October, and store them somewhere cool and dry to sow the following year.
