Kosmeya sweet chocolate planting and care in the open field

Growing in the tropics and subtropics of America, Cosmos is a flowering herb of the Astrov family. The literal translation of this name sounds like "decoration", which corresponds to the shape of the flower. More than 20 species, only three of which are grown in our territory, belong to this genus. Planting and caring for this wonderful cosme plant outdoors will be the topic of this article.

General description and types

Plant height can reach from 50 to 150 cm. It is a well-branched bush with thin, delicate twigs and delicate feathery leaves. The inflorescence of the cosmos reaches up to 12 cm in diameter, the middle flowers are very small, yellow, and the petals are large, elongated, with white, red, pink, yellow, ruby ​​colors.

Cosmeya double-feathered

This is an annual with flowers 7-12 cm in diameter, bright, catchy, of various colors, the height of the bush is from 80 to 150 cm. It is the flowers of this cosmos that we see most often in summer cottages. The bloom is luxurious, from June to September. Due to its catchy beauty, ease of care, this plant enjoys love and increased attention of breeders, many varieties of a wide variety of colors have been bred.

• Kosmeya variety series "Sonata" - petals, cut along the edge, about 12 cm in diameter. The plant is low, up to 50 cm tall. Flowers are pure white, white with a red edge, pink, carmine, burgundy, crimson.

• Kosmeya "Seashell" is distinguished by its petals, rolled into a tube, resembling a shell, white, pink or crimson. Flowers - up to 12 cm, plant height - 80-150 cm.
• Kosmeya "Sensation" - early flowering, with pink or carmine flowers 7-10 cm in diameter, grows up to 90 cm.
• Kosmeya "Rose Valley" - lush double flowers with large light pink petals, grows up to 70 cm.
• Kosmeya "Fire of Love" - ​​red flowers, 10-12 cm in size, grows up to 80-150 cm.
• Kosmeya "Psyche" - semi-double large flowers up to 12 cm, grows up to - up to 80 cm.
• "Golden Valley" - double yellow flowers.
• "Brightness" is a bright terry cosmeya.
• "Antiquity" is the earliest variety, characterized by a gradual change in flower color from deep ruby ​​to bronze-pink.

Kosmeya sulfur-yellow

It is a thermophilic annual. It is distinguished by yellow and orange petals arranged in two rows and protruding dark anthers. Yellow kosmeya has medium-sized flowers with a diameter of 4-6 cm and grows up to 150 cm, flowering begins in June and ends in October.The selection of the sulfur-yellow species is moving towards the creation of dwarf varieties and an increase in the range of colors.

• Kosmeya "Fox" - blooms in yellow, orange, red. The height of the bush is up to 100 cm.
• Kosmeya "Kosmik" is a dwarf variety series up to 30 cm tall. Plants resemble tagetis, flowers of yellow-red shades.
• Variety "Dwarf Ledyeard" - semi-double flowers of dark red color.
• Variety "Bilbo" - semi-double with orange flowers.

Kosmeya blood red

The only perennial kosmeya growing on our territory is blood-red kosmeya. For its characteristic smell, it is sometimes called chocolate cosme, and for velvety, almost black maroon inflorescences - black cosme. It grows up to 70 cm. This perennial without shelter can be grown only in the south. In the northern regions, it requires shelter in winter or is grown in pots, and with the onset of cold weather it is brought inside the room. It can be grown as an annual.

Reproduction

Chocolate kosmeya reproduces with the help of cuttings and tubers, annual - seeds. To collect the seeds, put gauze bags on large faded buds so that the seeds do not spill out. When they darken, collect them, dry them in a well-ventilated area and store until disembarking. Germination lasts up to 3 years.

Remember that hybrids, when propagated by seeds, do not always retain varietal characteristics. To get high quality varietal flowers, buy seeds from trusted producers in shops or garden centers.

Cosme seeds

Seeds can be sown directly into the soil in late autumn or when the snow melts in spring, just on the surface of the soil. When the seedlings grow up, they are thinned out.

Flower seeds for seedlings are sown in March or early April, without sprinkling with soil - they need light for germination. A dish with seeds should be covered with glass and kept at a temperature of 18-20 in a bright place, sprayed with a spray bottle every day and ventilated.

Seedlings that have grown up to 3-5 cm dive. You can not dive, but simply thin out the sprouts - the germination of the seeds is good.

Planting seedlings in the ground

When to plant cosmea grown from seeds, the weather will tell you. Flowers are planted in a permanent place when the threat of frost disappears in the spring. A sunny place with moderately fertile soil is suitable for them. Excessively fertile soil contributes to the growth of greenery to the detriment of flowering, a shady place also does not contribute to the abundant appearance of buds.

Seedlings are planted every 30-35 cm in shallow holes and watered well. Before planting a tall cosmea, take care of the support.

Seasonal care

Cultivation of cosmos does not present any particular difficulties. When it grows up, do not forget to pinch the top to better bush. Although the plant is resistant to drought, if there is no rain for a long time, it is necessary to water it, and abundantly. Do this every week.

Top dressing with mineral fertilizers is done several times per season - on poor soils every month, on richer soils - every one and a half to two months.

Until the plant grows, it is necessary to remove the weeds and loosen the soil. During flowering, regularly remove faded buds - so the flowering will be plentiful and long. Tall varieties need support so that the flower does not fall apart or break from the wind. Kosmeya, which has grown too much, withstands pruning well.

The chocolate kosmeya planted in the ground is cut to 15 cm in late autumn, mulched with peat and covered with spruce branches. If you bring the plant indoors, dig it up and remove it from the street before the frost hits.

Pests and diseases

One of the undoubted advantages of the described plant is that it almost does not get sick. Pests do not bother him either. Snails and slugs are dangerous for young plants. They must either be collected by hand, or any means for dealing with slugs must be scattered under the bushes.

Kosmeya in landscape design

Cosmeya is always a welcome guest in the garden.Low-growing varieties look great in pots and containers, some varieties are grown specifically for cutting. This is truly a versatile plant - with its help you can cover unsightly places on the site or create a romantic mood.

Kosmeya in landscape design is used to create large arrays along fences and fences. It can be used to create landscape groups, planting in the foreground in front of trees and shrubs during the season. Openwork leaves and light bright flowers will enliven green plantings.

Varieties with a low crown can be used as loose wide curbs, tall ones will look great in the background of a large lawn. These flowers are appropriate in flower beds, ridges and mixborders together with plants of the appropriate size - marigolds, chamomiles, phloxes, and other annuals.

Varieties with simple flowers are suitable for creating a rustic garden, rudbeckia will be a good neighbor, which you can learn more about here, and exquisite chocolate kosmeya will look good in large pots on the terrace at the entrance or on the balcony.

Kosmeya was introduced to Western Europe by the Spaniards from Central and South America. These territories are home to dozens of species of wild-growing cosmos. The flower has other names - cosmos, beauty, Mexican aster. Sometimes the name of a plant is written through "a" - kasmeya.

Now kosmeya is planted everywhere in personal plots and in city flower beds. In European Russia, this flower can also be found on wastelands, and along fields and roads.

Description of the plant

There are perennial and annual types of cosmos. This herb belongs to the Asteraceae (or Compositae) family. Inflorescences (baskets) in representatives of this family have a round corymbose shape. They are complex, that is, what we call the "flower of the cosmos", in fact, is an inflorescence of dozens of individual flowers, collected in one basket.

In the central part of the inflorescence, there are thin tubular median flowers. They are tightly adjacent to each other. And each outer petal is also a separate flower.

In Russia, the most popular cosmea is double-feathery, the less common is the sulfur-yellow kosmeya.

The inflorescences of the cosmos are open to the sun's rays, their diameter is 6-12 cm. The petals (ligulate flowers) of the cosmos are colored pink, red, dark red, orange or yellow. They can also be white. The petals have an elongated, oval shape, their outer edges are slightly dissected. The central flowers are thin yellow tubes, collected in a bunch. One or more inflorescences can be located on the stem and its branches.

The stems of the plant are erect, thin and highly branched. They are very flexible and rarely break when exposed to wind. The leaves of the cosmos are long and delicate (threadlike). The plant reaches a height of 50-150 cm.

The fruit of the plant is a brownish, yellowish or gray basket (achene) up to 1 cm in size, in which the seeds are tightly collected.

Kosmeya blooms from July to frost. The plant, thanks to its large bright inflorescences emitting aroma, attracts pollinating insects to the garden plot.

The most interesting, popular types and varieties of kosmeya flower with photos

The popularity of cosme varieties depends on the natural conditions in the regions of our large country. The further south the region is located, the more refined varieties of cosmeas can be found in gardeners' plots and in city flower beds. In the northern regions of central Russia, in Siberia and the Far East, more frost-resistant and unpretentious varieties are planted.

Perennials do not always tolerate winter soil freezing. In addition, sudden frosts, which continue until the last ten days of May, cause great damage to orchards and vegetable gardens in areas of risky farming.

Consider some types and varieties of cosme.

• Terry kosmeya.
• Kosmeya is sulfur-yellow.
• Other varieties.

Terry kosmeya

For a florist, new varieties of terry cosme are always interesting. They differ from their wild-growing relative in that the reed flowers in the inflorescences are located not in one, but in two, three or more rows. As a result, we see a lush, beautiful flower that looks like a small dahlia. Such inflorescences make the branches heavier, but in artificially bred plants, the stems are usually thicker.

Photo. Terry kosmeya

Now you can buy and grow dozens of varieties of terry cosmos. Popular terry varieties are Snow Click, Pink Lollipop, Pink Bonbon, Terry Click, Orange, Cranberry Click, Glissandro, Seashells, Rose Valley, Iridescent Shimmers, Psyche, Burgundy Button, Double Click Bon-Bon Rose and others. Semi-double varieties are also popular: Ariadna, Ladybug, Polydor.

Terry kosmea varieties are distinguished by a varied, bright color of inflorescences, their volume and size.

Lovers of yellow flowers appreciated the beauty of the Golden Valley terry cosme, which is not demanding to care for, is resistant to cold and blooms until the end of September.

The bushes of semi-double cosmea Polydor fox cubs are densely covered with orange and scarlet inflorescences and can become the central part of the landscape composition.

There are varieties that give only red inflorescences. These are Cranberry Click, Diablo, Red Pipe, Burgundy Button. Red kosmeya can be ordinary, semi-double and terry. The spectrum of red varies from light scarlet to bright red and burgundy.

In breeding varieties, the color is stable and rarely changes after self-collecting seeds and reseeding them next year.

Kosmeya sulfur-yellow

Kosmeya sulfur-yellow, unlike other species of this plant, is thermophilic, its outer inflorescences are located in two rows, and their diameter is small (up to 6-7 cm). This type of cosmos is drought tolerant, but does not tolerate cold weather. The outer petals of the inflorescence are colored bright yellow, reddish-orange and orange, the inner flowers are yellow. The height of the plant does not exceed 80 cm, and the diameter of the inflorescences is 6 centimeters.

Bilbo and Krest Lemon varieties are popular among amateur flower growers.

The Bilbo variety grows up to half a meter in height and produces semi-double orange inflorescences. Small yellow inflorescences of the Krest Lemon variety resemble a wild-growing buttercup. This variety belongs to undersized (the height of the bushes does not exceed 50 cm).

Other varieties of cosme

Florists and landscape designers are also attracted by new varieties with chamomile inflorescences. So, the Pikoti variety looks unusual and beautiful, the reed inflorescences of which are white in color with a red edging and yellow median flowers.

The inflorescences of the varieties Deidrim and Sweet Dreams are beautiful - they have yellow central flowers surrounded by white, pink in the central part of the petals arranged in one row.

Kosmeya varieties Red and White live up to their name. White and bright red inflorescences grow on one bush.

Interesting varieties of pink cosmea Rediance, Crimson Sensation. In the breeding varieties Sea Shels and Red Pipe, the reed flowers are rolled into a tube, which gives the inflorescences a completely unusual look.

Cosmeya Dezzler (whose red inflorescences change color from scarlet to dark red), magnificent white Purity, pink Radiance, white, pink and crimson-red undersized Sonata are very popular and beautiful.

Growing cosmos from seeds and seedlings

• Sowing seeds into the soil.
• Growing seedlings.
• Landing place.
• Soil composition.
• Fertilizers for cosme.

Sowing seeds into the soil

The seeds are planted in the soil after the snow melts and the earth begins to warm up during the day. In southern Russia, sowing can be done at the end of April, in Siberia - in the first decade of June. Before planting, the soil is dug up or loosened to remove weeds. Holes up to 1 cm deep are made in the ground, three or four seeds are placed in each hole and sprinkled with earth a little. The earth can be lightly compacted with your hands so that it is not blown up by the wind. The distance between the holes should be about 30-35 cm.After planting, the garden is watered with water.

Features of growing seedlings

Cosmos seedlings can be grown in crates

Seedlings can be grown in a box or in cups. The box is filled with fertile soil, the seeds are scattered over the entire area and sprinkled with a thin (up to 3 mm) layer of earth. You can just slightly deepen the seeds into the ground. It must be remembered that deeply planted seeds may not sprout.

Seedlings appear in seven to ten days. Densely sprouted shoots need to be thinned out or planted. Before planting, the distance between shoots should be at least 10 cm. The seedlings feel great at room temperature.

Three to four seeds are planted in a glass. Planting seedlings, and not dry seeds, in the ground, allows you to get blooming cosmea much earlier. So, when planting seeds in open ground, the first flowers will appear in July or early August. When planted with seedlings, flowering will begin in early July.

Place for planting cosmos

When planting, you need to take into account that many varieties of cosme are perennials, so the site should not be dug up or plowed up every year. The site must be sunny. The plant is not afraid of drought and cold weather, but constant shade will not do it good. The site must be protected from constant strong winds that can knock and break the tall stems of the cosmos.

It is important to remember that kosmeya is a cross-pollinated plant, so different varieties need to be planted far from each other.

Soil composition for flowers

Kosmeya grows well on any soil, but if it is planted on a site abundantly fertilized with organic matter, saltpeter, and other synthetic fertilizers, then the plant will have many leaves, bushy stems, but few flowers. On the contrary, on depleted soils, there will be many flowers on each bush. The composition of the soil should be slightly acidic (pH 5-6), and water should easily pass through the soil.

Fertilizers for cosme

To feed the cosmos, you can use Agricol

In order for the kosmeya to bloom well, it can be sprayed with preparations for flowering plants. The drug "Bud" stimulates growth and flowering, increases the survival rate of seedlings. They need to irrigate the leaves of the cosmos three times per season. For the first time, you can spray the seedlings planted in the ground, the second time - the whole plant during the formation of buds, the third time the bush is sprayed during active flowering.

Agricola can be used as a top dressing. It is used for root watering 1-2 times per season.

If the garden or garden soil is poor and has not been fertilized for many years, then you can add any complex fertilizer, superphosphate, burnt cow dung before flowering, remembering that the soil should not be oversaturated with them.

Outdoor care for kosmeya flowers

Caring for the cosmos consists of weeding the place of growth from weeds and watering in dry times. Weeding and loosening the soil increases natural ventilation in the root zone. High varieties of cosme are often tied to pegs or a special lattice so that they do not break from the wind and do not fall under their own weight.

In order for the plant to branch out to the sides, and not up, pinch the top of the central branch. To give a well-groomed appearance, faded baskets, from which it is not planned to collect seeds, are removed. This contributes to the emergence of new inflorescences.

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For the winter, the stalks of perennial cosmos are cut either at the very ground, or at a height of 10-15 cm from it. If the flower is bred in areas with severe winters, the planting site is covered with branches of coniferous trees before autumn.

How reproduction is carried out

Kosmeya propagates by self-sowing and seeds

Kosmeya multiplies by seeds, which can sprout "self-sowing". The largest baskets are chosen to collect seeds. It is impossible to collect unripe seeds that hardly lag behind the seedbed.You need to choose the moment when the seeds are ripe (they become dry, easily separated, have a brownish color). If you miss the moment of collecting, the seeds will be blown away by the wind, they will simply fall to the ground. The collection of seeds is done very carefully and carefully, then folding them into bags made of cloth or porous paper.

Seeds should be stored in a dry, cool, dark, ventilated room, at positive temperatures (many varieties can be stored at subzero temperatures). They must not be overheated or wetted during storage. Seeds remain viable for up to three years.

Diseases, pests and how to care for and control pests

The selection and wild-growing cosmea does not suffer from any diseases. Perhaps, in its homeland, in Central and South America, this plant is affected by any diseases, but here it feels very good. Insect pests and fungi also do not affect this plant.

Young seedlings and fresh shoots can be eaten by slugs and snails. They need to be collected by hand and removed from the site.

The combination of cosme with other plants in landscape design

There are many areas of modern landscape design. To create a certain style, they make the author's layout of the site, using flower beds and lawns of various shapes, a wide variety of flowers, shrubs and trees. Kosmeya goes well with both short and tall plants, and is used in landscape styles such as Art and Craft, Brutalism, Garden hi-tech, Country.

Chamomile, delphinium, mallow, lilies, geraniums, asters, flax, calendula, bells, lupins, carnations, salvia, alissum, and other flowering plants are combined with cosmea. In some cases, the color of the inflorescences is important, in others - long stems, allowing you to plant undersized flowers and shrubs in front of the cosmos.

A bright flower known to everyone since childhood, which grew in flower beds near the house or in the country, is loved by many. They love her for her unpretentiousness, riot of colors and simplicity in planting and care, as well as for a long flowering period: from late June until autumn. We will consider photos of cosmos flowers and descriptions of its most popular types below.

Description and care

Kosmeya (Cosmos) is a common plant of the Asteraceae family, which came to us from Mexico, Brazil and Central America. For a long time, the plant was not perceived as flowers, considering it an ordinary grass. But thanks to the work of breeders, it was possible to breed varieties that now adorn gardens and city flower beds with a riot of colors throughout the summer.

There is a popular name for cosme - "disheveled young lady", which was given to the flower because of its appearance: thin curly foliage resembles disheveled curls, the tips of which are dotted with bright inflorescences.

There are annual and perennial types of cosmos. In total, there are about 25 varieties of this flower, but the best of all have taken root and are popular with us sulfur-yellow kosmeya and double-pinned kosmeya. Regardless of the species, the plant loves light, but it takes root best of all and pleases with lush flowering longer if the flower is planted in partial shade.

If you plant a kosmeya in the bright sun, it will quickly fade. In strong shade, the plant will bloom poorly.

For planting a plant, it is worth choosing light, breathable soils. Cosmey can be planted with seeds or seedlings. The first option is suitable for the most common simple varieties. They are sown directly into the ground in April-May, when the ground has already warmed up enough. After two to three weeks, seedlings appear, which, when they reach 5 cm, must be thinned out.

Selected, hybrid varieties are grown through seedlings. Planted in this way, the plants begin flowering from the second half of July. Kosmeya, which was sown directly into the ground, blooms in August. So that the flower does not lose its decorative properties, it is necessary to remove wilted inflorescences. Cosmey of any kind is watered until it forms into an adult plant.Further, moderate watering is carried out if necessary, that is, with dry summers and lack of rainfall.

It is an unpretentious plant, resistant to cold and drought. Photos of cosmos flowers will allow you to appreciate all the beauty of the flower and understand the reasons for its popularity in landscape design and the arrangement of personal plots and flower beds.

Types of cosmos

The popularity of the plant is also due to the variety of its sizes. There is a tall, undersized kosmeya and dwarf kosmeya, which are often grown in flower pots at home.

Simple varieties of cosme are most often tall, spread over the soil, and therefore they must be tied up. But breeders have bred varieties of undersized cosme and dwarf cosme, which form neat, compact flower rosettes, easily adjacent to other flowers in the flower bed. And although more than 20 species of cosme are known, plants that will be described below have spread.

Kosmeya Double-Feathered

The most popular plant variety is the Double-Feathered Kosmeya, whose homeland is considered to be the mountainous regions of Mexico. This is an annual plant, the stems of which sometimes reach a height of more than 1 meter. Inflorescences of white, pink and purple color, up to 10 cm in diameter. Most often, you can see just such flowers in flower beds.

Stems are erect, dense and branched, leaves are feathery and twice dissected. That is why this variety received such a name, and the plants - the openwork appearance of greenery. The flowers of the double-feathered cosmos resemble chamomile in appearance, collected in baskets of many inflorescences. Blooms profusely from June to September. The most common annual, grown to decorate flower beds. The seeds ripen well, germination is maintained for 3-5 years.

Thanks to the work of breeders, more refined varieties of double-pinnate cosmea with a less catchy color range and smaller inflorescences were bred. Tall varieties of cosme are well suited for cutting. The photo of cosmos flowers shows what a beautiful and bright plant it is.

Kosmeya Sulfur-yellow

Unlike the double-feathery one described above, the sulfur-yellow kosmeya is more thermophilic, and begins to bloom only in July. She has wider leaves, and inflorescences of warm colors: yellow, orange or red. The very word sulfur in its name means yellow shades of flowers. Their sizes are small, up to 6 cm in diameter, but the petals grow in two rows. Therefore, the flower, which is also called the cosmos, is considered semi-double.

Depending on the variety, the height of the stems also varies: they grow from 30 centimeters to one and a half meters. Kosmeya Sulfur Yellow is drought tolerant and therefore can be grown on the sunny side. Forms many buds, blooms violently, after withering, the petals fall off. The plant gives abundant self-seeding, it is also very easy to collect the seeds, there is no need to clean them. Flowering ends in October.

It is best to germinate the seeds of sulfur-yellow cosmos in the light, and for this you do not need to deeply bury them in the soil.

Outwardly, the plants of this species resemble a frozen fireworks of bright yellow flowers: the stem is thin, branched, the branches are spread out in different directions, slightly lowered.

Kosmeya Chocolate

Another type of plant is perennial kosmeya Chocolate. The flower is unique, interesting, but not so widespread. Its flowers are dark red, burgundy, and therefore it is also called black cosme. Its homeland is Latin America and Mexico, and therefore this species is very thermophilic in comparison with those described earlier.

It is preferable to grow it in the southern regions, since the cold resistance of this variety is very low. If black kosmeya grows in areas with a northern climate, it is grown as an annual outdoors or indoors as a perennial. Loves loose, fertile, well-warmed soil and enough sunlight.

The plant got its name due to the aroma of chocolate exuding it.People have always tried to pick a flower as a souvenir that emits such an alluring and sweet smell. Therefore, by the end of the last century, only a few bushes of perennial chocolate cosme remained in Mexico. But thanks to the labor of breeders, it was possible to avoid the complete destruction of this unique plant.

Cosmos should not be fertilized too much, especially with nitrogen fertilizing, as this leads to an increase in green mass to the detriment of flowering.

Kosmeya Chocolate is a perennial plant, but given its weak winter hardiness, during the cold season it must be brought into the house or greenhouse. Blood-red, scarlet, almost black flowers with a diameter of 4 cm are strewn with branches of the plant, which reach a height of 40 cm to one and a half meters. Black cosmos can also be grown through seedlings as an annual.

Kosmeya Terry

As a rule, kosmeya is a plant with chamomile-like flowers of different diameters. But given the popularity, many different varieties and its hybrids have been bred. This is exactly what Kosmeya Terry is: it is not a separate variety, but a plant variety. Its difference is that the petals grow in several rows, which makes the flowers look terry. The rules for planting and caring for it are the same as for other plant species.

You can sow directly into the ground or in boxes for seedlings. Terry kosmea has very small seeds, therefore you should not bury them too deeply, it is enough to lightly sprinkle them with soil. To enhance flowering, you need to regularly remove wilted inflorescences. Depending on the variety, the flowers of terry cosmos can be of different colors, and they will delight until the very frost.

Cosmeya Sensation

Light-loving, cold-resistant plant, not demanding on the composition of the soil. The stalks of the cosmee Sensation reach a height of 90 cm, and the plant blooms with white, pink, carmine flowers of a rather large size, up to 10 cm in diameter. Inflorescences are located singly at the end of the stems. Well suited for planting as a natural fence, decorating walls, fences, in the background of flower beds and for cutting. The scent of cosmos flowers The sensation attracts butterflies and bees to the garden.

Kosmeya Shell

This is a type of double-feathery cosmos with interesting, curled petals. It is for this feature that the plant got its name: kosmeya Shell. These are sprawling bushes with many shoots. The characteristic openwork foliage and flowers of white, pink and purple. Possesses high decorative properties, will decorate any garden, suitable for cutting. Cosmos varieties Shell are unpretentious in care, bloom from June to autumn. They are planted both as seeds in open ground and through seedlings.

Kosmeya Orange

A popular variety of annual plants is the Orange Kosmeya. Differs in bright, rounded inflorescences of sunny yellow-orange color. Stems are strong, herbaceous, from 30 to 120 cm high with graceful, lacy leaves and semi-double flowers up to 6 cm in diameter. This variety of cosme will be a wonderful decoration for a flower bed.

Kosmeya Pikoti

An annual plant with stems up to 80 cm high, growing in a lush bush with openwork leaves. Kosmeya Pikoti is famous for its unusual color of flowers: white petals are framed with a carmine-red border of varying degrees of intensity, the diameter of the inflorescences is from 7 to 10 cm. It blooms intensively from July until the first frost. The bright flowers of the Pikoti cosmos will decorate any flower garden, will be an excellent decor for the fence and will look great in a vase. The variety is easily propagated by self-sowing.

Kosmeya red

Another unpretentious plant variety is kosmeya red Cardinal. The bush is tall with thin, graceful foliage, the stems are densely branched, covered with large red flowers. Blooms all summer until September, grows well on poor soils. This bright plant is used as a high curb for group plantings, self-seeding.

After looking at the photos of cosme flowers from this article, you can be sure: whatever variety you choose for your garden, you will end up with bright, multi-colored flower beds, delighting not only with color, but also with a pleasant aroma. At the same time, no special efforts are required to grow cosmos flowers, and therefore any summer resident and amateur florist can grow them.

Slender and graceful cosmeya - video

Kosmeya (sometimes they write kasmeya, also called space, Mexican aster) is a herbaceous plant of the Asteraceae family. In its natural environment, it occupies vast territories of South and Central America, was brought by the Spaniards to Western Europe, where now it not only decorates gardens, but also grows wildly along roads, fields, in wastelands.

Botanical description

The stem height is 50-150 cm. It is thin, erect, branched. The leaves are openwork, threadlike. The inflorescence inherent in all Compositae: the core consists of numerous tubular yellow flowers, and what we call a petal is actually a separate inflorescence.

These "petals" are oval in shape, elongated, the edges are slightly dissected. The color can be white, pink, yellow, red, dark red. At the top of the stem, the inflorescences are located singly or in several pieces. Fragrant flowers attract pollinating insects.

When it blooms

Flowering lasts all summer until the onset of severe cold weather. The fruit is a densely seeded achene.

In our latitudes, kosmeya is grown as a one - and a perennial plant.

Growing cosmos from seeds

Cosme seeds photo

Sowing in the ground

You can sow seeds directly into open ground or grow seedlings. In the first case, the flowering of the cosmos starts in July and early August, in the second, the cosmos will bloom in early summer.

You can sow kosmeya when the soil is ripe, already in March. In the conditions of the middle lane, kosmeya can be sown before winter, in October. Kosmeya is able to reproduce by self-seeding.

How to sow kosmeya in the ground when to plant photos of seedlings

• Dig up the soil, remove weeds, level the bed.
• Make holes no more than 1 cm deep, place 3-4 seeds there each, cover with a thin layer of soil, compact a little. Water gently to prevent the seeds from washing away. Maintain a distance between holes of about 30-35 cm.
• Thin seedlings, weed young plants from weeds.

How to grow seedlings

Kosmeya growing from seeds photo seedlings

Sow seeds for seedlings in March-early April.... Sow in boxes or immediately in separate cups (then you don't have to transplant).

• Fill containers with light, loose soil, moisten, spread the seeds over the surface, press them a little with your finger.
• Sow 1-2 seeds in cups.
• Cover the crops with foil or glass, germinate in a bright place at a temperature of 18-20 ºC, ventilate the greenhouse, moisten the soil.
• Expect sprouting 7-10 days. Then remove the shelter, reduce the temperature by a couple of degrees.
• Thin the seedlings in the boxes, leaving a distance of about 10 cm between them.
• The grown seedlings are taken out into the street two weeks before planting in the ground and hardened, gradually increasing the time spent in the fresh air every day.

Planting seedlings of cosmos in open ground

How to plant cosmeia in the ground

Transplant seedlings into open ground with the establishment of real heat: in late May-early June.

Find a sunny spot. Keep in mind that strong gusts of wind can break thin stems - plant tall plants in a secluded place or immediately build supports. Make shallow holes, keep the distance between plantings for low and medium-sized plants about 30 cm, for tall plants - 35 cm.Cosmea has cross-pollination - plant different varieties away from each other. When you reach a height of 50 cm, pinch the tops of the shoots.

• Kosmeya will grow well in water and breathable neutral soil.
• If the soil is excessively fed with organic matter or synthetic fertilizers, the stems and leaves will actively grow, and there will be few flowers.
• Feed the depleted soil with complex mineral fertilizers, superphosphate or organic matter (mullein infusion) once a season.

Spray three times a season with a special preparation for flowering plants, for example, "Bud". Carry out the first spraying at the seedling stage, the second - before the beginning of budding, the third - during the period of active flowering.

Outdoor care for cosmos

Loosening the soil and watering

Weed young plants regularly, loosen the soil after watering or rain. Older plants cope with weeds on their own.

The plant is drought tolerant - water only in severe drought.

Pruning

Removing wilted flower baskets stimulates the emergence of new flowers. Leave only a few if you want to collect seeds.

Preparing for winter

Perennial cosmos must be prepared for wintering. After the end of flowering, cut the stems, leaving 10-15 cm above the soil surface. Mulch the soil with fallen leaves, cover with spruce branches.

Diseases and pests

The plant is not exposed to diseases and pests. Fresh young shoots can be eaten by snails and slugs. Collect them manually or use traps.

Collecting cosme seeds

How to collect cosme seeds

Choose large baskets for collecting seeds. Ripe seeds are brownish in color, dry and easily peel off. In order not to miss the moment of collection (the seeds fly away easily from the wind), cover the baskets with gauze.

Collect the seeds carefully and place them in a paper or cloth bag.

Seeds germinate for about 3 years. Store them in a dark, dry place with good ventilation.

Types and varieties of cosme with photos and names

Cosmos bipinnatus

Cosmos bipinnatus double-pinned cosmos bipinnatus cultivar Sensation Mix photo

An annual herb. The height of the stem is 80-150 cm. The leaf plates are similar to the leaves of dill. The diameter of the basket is 7-10 cm. The core is yellow, the petals can be white, pink, red, purple.

Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Cranberries’ photo

A popular variety of the species is the Kosmeya shell - the reed petals are rolled into tubes.

Cosmeya blood-red or chocolate Cosmos atrosanguineus

Kosmeya blood-red or chocolate Cosmos atrosanguineus photo

Perennial species. The core and petals are burgundy and exude a chocolate aroma. The plant is thermophilic, most often grown in flowerpots, pots.

Kosmeya sulfur yellow Cosmos sulphureus

Kosmeya sulfur yellow Cosmos sulphureus variety Cosmic Orange photo

The erect stem of the plant reaches a height of 1.5 m. The leaves are cut into 2 or 3 lobes, have pointed tops. The core is yellow, the petals have a golden yellow, orange tint. Annual.

Terry kosmeya

Cosmos variety Diablo Cosmos Diablo photo

A variety with reed flowers (petals) arranged in several rows. The flower is beautiful, lush. The stems are denser. The color is varied.

In turn, this variety has many hybrids:

• Golden Valley: has flowers of a sunny yellow color;
• Polydor fox - scarlet or orange inflorescences;

Kosmeya grade Piper Red Cosmos bipinnatus 'Pied Piper Red'

• Diablo, Red Pipe, Cranberry Click, Burgundy Button - color spectrum from scarlet to burgundy;
• Pink Bonbon, Pink Lollipop, Rose Valley, Snow Click, Terry Click, Glissandro, Iridescent tints, Orange - various varieties of terry cosmos;
• Ladybug, Ariadne - semi-double.

Popular varieties of cosme

Cosmos bipinnatus Velouette photo

Sensation crimson, Rediance - has pink flowers;

Kosmeya variety Dezzler Dazzler photo

• Dezzler - reddish petals have a border of a darker shade;
• Purity - snow-white color;
• Sonata - undersized cosmea with white, pink, crimson-red petals;

Cosmos plant Fizzie Rose Pikoti photo

Pikoti - white petals are framed by a pink, fiery red border.

Kosmeya in landscape design

Kosmeya in landscape design photo of flowers

There are many directions in modern landscape design. Kosmeya is perfect for decorating a garden in the style of Country, Garden hi-tech, Art and Craft.

It is combined with short and tall plants. Good neighbors will be chamomile, delphinium, lily, mallow, aster, geranium, flax, calendula, bells, cloves, alissum, salvia.