Cosmos, sometimes known as the Mexican aster, is perennial in its native home but it’s not hardy enough for our cooler climate and so in Britain it is grown as an annual. Cosmos is easy to grow from seed, performs well in containers or bedding schemes and comes in a dazzling array of colours, heights and flower types making it a firm favourite of both amateur and professional gardeners.

Cosmos are heat and sun-loving plants, and without both, they’ll struggle to flower as productively as cosmos are known to do. If your plants are absent of blooms, or there are fewer blooms than you’d expect, then take a look at where you planted them.If you started seeds early before the weather got consistently warm, the cosmos’ days to maturity (in other words, bloom) might be delayed. Cold soil and cosmos seeds do not mix, as the seeds require warmth to germinate.

We still have two more great new exciting varieties of cosmos that are coming through the system,” he said. “Seed is being bulked up and we should be able to make an official announcement very soon.” This jump start will help the cosmos reach maturity while the days are still shorter than they will be during the peak of summer. Sow Cosmos seed from March to May at a depth of 3mm (1/8") in a good quality seed compost, and cover the seeds with a very fine sprinkling of vermiculite. Place the seed tray in a propagator at a temperature of 18-25C (64-77F) or seal it inside a polythene bag. Keep the soil damp but not wet. Do not exclude light as this aids germination which usually takes 7-15 days. Now that you’ve got your cosmos sorted out, find out how long you can expect them to keep it up in this post, Do Comos Bloom All Summer? Tips To Keep Them Flowering.

Garden Ready Plugs

Dobies strives to ensure that all its plants are delivered to you in the perfect condition for planting. While the majority of our nursery plants cope well with slight delays in intransit, sadly, the time it takes to deliver to certain locations in the UK means that we can't guarantee this for some of our smaller plug products and tender bedding and vegetable lines, which do not respond well to the extra journey time. So regretfully while we offer the majority of our live plant offering nationwide, we are unable to ship plugs, begging plants and tender vegetable plants to the following areas: HS, IV41-IV49, IV51, IV55-56, KW15-KW17, PA34, PA41-48, PA60-PA78, PA80, PH40-PH44, TR21-TR24, ZE1-ZE3.

If you have a slightly shady yard, try growing your cosmos in a pot or other container. That way, you have more flexibility for moving it where the sunniest spot is in your yard. Suttons Consumer Products reserves the right at its sole discretion to disqualify any person it finds to be tampering or to have tampered with the operation of the giveaway, or to be acting in violation of these terms and conditions. Cosmos won’t benefit from that extra care, though. If you have a patch of soil or a neglected garden bed with so-so soil in it, that’s a much better spot for your cosmos flowers. Save the compost-rich beds for heavy feeders, instead. By entering this giveaway, entrants confirm that they have read and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions and by the decisions of the Suttons Consumer Products, which are final in all matters relating to the giveaway. Failure to do so will result in the forfeiture of the Prize. No correspondence will be entered into. But now T&M bring us ‘Apricot Lemonade’. I’ve had it on trial this year: it has the same neat and bushy habit, and early flowering, as ‘Lemonade’, the plants have made about 50cm and they’ve bushed out well. The flowers are almost primrose yellow with a hazy apricot pink band around the yellow eye. The colour varies a little, some are a more peachy yellow than others, but none are so different that they don’t fit in.I sowed batches of four seeds of 'Apricot Lemonade' in 7cm pots on the windowsill in April, moved them into a sheltered spot outside when they came through and then planted out the potfuls, without breaking them up, at the end of May. Delightful. This giveaway is only open to United Kingdom residents aged over 18, excluding employees of Suttons Consumer Products, their families and all those professionally associated with this Promotion. Suttons Consumer Products may request that the winner participates in publicity arising from the Promotion. The winner is under no obligation to participate and may decline this request. Participation is at the winner’s discretion. Keep in mind that cosmos are short-day plants, so if they are young plants, they will bloom best once days are under 14 hours long. They will eventually bloom, even if the days are long. To get the strongest flush of flowers, try starting them indoors 4-6 weeks before planting them out. Sow Cosmos seed in trays or growing cells during early spring and cover with about 5mm of compost. The seeds are long and thin, so they can be easily handled.