Fundamental Facts
HARDINESS: Zones 4 to 9
PREFERRED SOIL pH: Slightly alkaline to neutral soil
PREFERRED SOIL TYPE: Well-drained loam
PREFERRED LIGHT: Sun to filtered shade
ATTRIBUTES: Long-lasting, heat-tolerant white, pink, purple, and orange, cloverlike blossoms in summer; grow in beds or in containers; cut for fresh or dried flower arrangements
SEASON OF INTEREST: Midsummer to frost
FAVORITES: 'Bicolor Rose' with white centers surrounded by a haze of lilac-rose; 'Strawberry Fields' for orange flowers
QUIRKS: Plants are slow to flower
GOOD NEIGHBORS: All summer-flowering annuals and perennials including black-eyed Susan, cosmos, marigold, zinnias
WHERE IT GROWS BEST: Fertile, well-drained toil in full sun and warm summer climates
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: Aphids, red spider miles; leaf-spotting fungal diseases
CRITTER RESISTANCE: Excellent
SOURCE: Bedding plants, seeds
DIMENSIONS: 10-24 in (25.4-61 cm) tall, and are 12 in (30.5 cm) wide
Gomphrena in the Landscape
The papery little pompon flowers of gomphrenas color the garden for weeks in late summer. Tolerant of drought as well as heat and humidity, care-free gomphrenas form 2 ft (0.6 m) tall, angular plants clothed in light green, fuzzy, oval leaves. The flowers sit atop the stem tips and resemble stiff clover blossoms in white, pink, purple, or orange. Use these tough, heat-tolerant annuals to replace cool-season annuals that stop blooming in early summer and to bring welcome relief to gardens dominated by daisy-shaped flowers. You can mass gomphrenas, mingle them with other annuals and perennials, or relegate them to a cutting garden to provide fresh and dried flowers.
To enjoy gomphrena flowers all year, cut the flowers just as the blossoms fully open, strip off the leaves, tie the stems in small bundles, and hang the bundles upside down in a cool, well-ventilated place. In only a few days they will be fully dry and ready for dried arrangements.
Everlastings in Many Hues
Variety names including 'Rose Pink', 'White', and 'Lavender Lady' describe the varied Rower colors. Dramatic 'Bicolor Rose' adds another dimension with its soft lilac-rose flowers accented by white centers. A popular low-maintenance dwarf form, the 10 in (25.4 cm) tall 'Gnome', makes a fine edging flower or can be used to brighten a hanging basket or pot.
Gomphrena haageana is a tropical perennial form of gomphrena usually grown as an annual, with flowers in shades of burnished orange. These 2 ft (0.6 m) tall plants include the bright orange 'Aurea' variety and 'Strawberry Fields', which has quantities of flowers in a rich shade of red-orange.
Growing Gomphrena
Bedding plants of gomphrenas are available in late spring, or you can start seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost. Look for seed packages labeled "rubbed seed", which means that the cottony chaff that clings to these seeds has been removed. Barely cover the seeds with soil. Keep the soil moist and above 70°F (21°C) until young plants have several sets of adult leaves. These plants truly resent chills, so wait until the weather is warm and settled to set plants in the garden, spacing them 1 ft (0.3 m) apart. Because gomphrenas are so heat and drought tolerant, they are excellent candidates for pots.
Plant gomphrenas in full sun, in any well-drained soil. They thrive on warmth, but where summers are hot and dry, it is worthwhile to mulch these beauties with a 3 in (7.6 cm) thick layer of organic mulch, such as shredded bark, to conserve soil moisture. Do not be alarmed if the plants seem slow to flower. Once they produce blooms, they will hold them in pristine condition for weeks. Cutting plants back to half their height before they set buds will produce bushier plants with more flowers.
Little pear-shaped sap-sucking aphids may gather on stem tips to suck juices or minute red spider mites may colonize the backs of leaves in the heat of summer, giving the leaves a bleached appearance. If so, knock them off with a daily spray of water from a hose or spray insecticidal soap. In unusually rainy weather, leaf-spotting fungal diseases can develop, disfiguring leaves with powdery or sooty deposits. But planting in a spot with well-drained soil and brisk air circulation prevents these problems.
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