Fundamental Facts
HARDINESS: Tender
PREFERRED SOIL pH: Adaptable
PREFERRED SOIL TYPE: Fertile, well-drained
PREFERRED LIGHT: Full sun
ATTRIBUTES: Uniquely shaped blue, white, pink, or lavender blossoms; lacy foliage. Use for beds; cut flowers for bouquets; dried seedpods for dried-flower arrangements
SEASON OF INTEREST: Summer to fall
FAVORITES: Blue-flowered 'Miss Jekyll' for compact stature; 'Persian Jewels' for dynamic, mixed colors
QUIRKS: Short-lived annual; sow successively for longer flowering
GOOD NEIGHBORS: Calendula, phlox, annual poppies, sweet alyssum
WHERE IT GROWS BEST: Rich, fertile soil; full sun
POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: Hot weather may delay flowering
CRITTER RESISTANCE: Good
SOURCE: Sow seeds; self-sows
DIMENSIONS: 2-3 ft (0.6-1 m) tall, 1 ft (0.3 m) or more wide
Love-in-a-Mist in the Landscape
Love-in-a-mist, also called nigella, is a hard working garden performer. It was popular in Victorian times, and it deserves more attention in modern gardens. Beyond being low maintenance, love-in-a-mist produces some of the most complex and beautiful blossoms in the floral kingdom.
Arising from an airy cloud of lacy, fernlike foliage are white, blue, or pink flowers. But the color isn't their most remarkable quality; it's the configuration that's unique. The pointed petals are laid out like those of a bachelor's button, and each 1 in (2.5 cm) flower has a green many-pointed topknot like a jester's hat that accents the center. Below the petals is an Elizabethan-collar of green sepals.
But that's not all. Blossoms you do not cut for summer bouquets will mature into inflated seedpods that resemble little spiny, puffed-up blow-fish. They practically dry themselves for use in dried arrangements.
For all its small delights, love-in -a-mist isn't a star-quality individual. It makes a statement only in a mass of 5 or more plants, which will become a patch of color that demands visiting while at its peak. Keep in mind that love-in-a-mist comes and goes rapidly. It can germinate, blossom, and go to seed in only 8 weeks. Several successive sowings will be necessary for a lasting display, making love-in-a-mist a perfect partner for similarly short-lived annual poppies.
It Just Gets Better
The plain old love-in-a-mist is pretty exciting, but newer varieties are even better. Much-treasured 'Miss Jekyl' has semidouble flowers that sparkle in brilliant sky blue shades, as well as pearly white flowers, standing on relatively compact, 2 ft (0.6 m) stems. The 'Persian Jewels' strain increases the color range to include rose, lavender, pink, purple, and carmine.
Increasing the Bounty
Love-in-a-mist prefers to be sown directly in the garden where you want it to grow. Scatter the seeds in a sunny spot. Prepare the soil by digging in a generous amount of peat moss, compost, or humus to give the soil a fluffy texture. Water lightly and frequently until the seedlings appear, gradually thinning them to 8 in (20.3 cm) apart. Quite often, an established planting of these trouble-free plants will self seed, scattering seeds that germinate and grow the following summer. Thin these volunteers to 6-8 in (15.2-20.3 cm) apart and enjoy the show.
To dry flowers for everlasting arrangements, wait until the seedpods are brittle, then cut the flower stems as long as possible. Bind several stems together with a rubber band and hang the bunches upside down in a dry, dark, well-ventilated room. Dried pods last for years.
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