Fizzy Rose Picotee Cosmos Plants

Cosmos Fizzy Rose Picotee

Cosmos bipinnatus Fizzy Rose Picotee has won the hearts (and minds) of almost everyone at Ashridge so we just had to include it in our range of ready to plant cosmos seedlings.

Cosmos Fizzy Rose is quite hard to describe and do it full justice. The flowers are variable in two respects. Some are single while others are semi-double and we have even caught it producing fully double blooms. The second is that the colouring is somewhat variable. Some flowers are definitely white with dark lilac-pink edged petals, which others are almost completely lilac pink with a little bit of white.

But "Fizzy" is fun in a border or cutting garden and looks good in a container too. It is a big Cosmos - reaching 100 cms quite easily and produces so many flowers that it needs to be "harvested" weekly. As long as it does not run to seed, a single plant can produce well over 100 flowers in a summer. Which is great as like all cosmos it is a superb cut flower and almost trouble free. And it makes me smile every time I see it.

Cosmos Fizzy Rose Picotee Facts:

• Half-hardy Annual
• Colour: lilac-pink and white
• Height: 70-100 cms
• Planting Months: April - June/July
• Flowering: May - October
• Plant Spacing: 25-35 cms

Plant Cosmos Fizzy Rose Picotee seedlings in well prepared, moist soil that ideally was enriched with a little organic matter the previous autumn. Not too much as Cosmos flower better if the soil is not overly rich. Water well after planting and for at least a week after that just to make sure they establish well.

Cosmos also grow very well in containers but remember that they can reach 100 cms in ideal conditions so we would suggest using pot sizes of at least 5 Litres and preferably a bit more. Any general purpose compost will do here.

The main requirements are that your plants have enough light and water - they grow very fast and flower hugely through summer so moisture is important. They can cope with a little shade but flower better in full sun. As an estimate, Cosmos need a minimum of 4 hours direct light a day, but they do better with more.

Because you are buying seedlings, you can plant your cosmos into their final flowering positions immediately. Space your plants 25-35 cm apart and (in a bed) plant them in drifts of 12-15 plants. They will either need a 90 cms cane per plant (which should be pushed in about 30 cms deep and about 5 cm from a plant) or a support made of twine or pea/bean netting. This should be stretched between canes about 30-40 cms above ground level and the cosmos can then grow through it. It is not pretty at first but the plants disguise it very quickly and it is an effective solution. Just don't plant a group that is so big you can't reach the middle...

As flowers develop cut them or dead head when they are over and your cosmos will carry on flowering all summer long. A well-grown plant can quite literally produce a hundred flowers or so in a season.

To maintain flower quality and size, you can use a high potash and phosphate fertiliser every fortnight throughout summer Home-made comfrey tea is perfect or one of the specialised tomato fertilisers will do very well.