Cosmos bipinnatus Velouette is one of the most striking cosmos and deserves a place in every border, ideally combined with others from our range of ready to plant cosmos seedlings. Each flower is slightly different, ranging from deep, dark claret with a few splashes of white along the length of each petal, to almost pure white painted over a background of burgundy. The edges of the petals have a crimped look and the centres shine a rich golden yellow. The foliage, too, is stellar: finely cut and bright, lush green, like fennel fronds or dill. Bobbing above this feathery greenery, the flowers of Velouette are a dream. And all of this from May right through to the cooler months of autumn - September and even October, if you keep cutting or deadheading.
At 90cm, Velouette is a tall cosmos, so it'll need a little staking in a border or container - hazel twigs are perfect for this, pushed into the soil when the plants are about 30cm tall so they can grow up and around the supports. As one of the taller cosmos, it's a great one for cutting and bringing indoors.
Like all cosmos, it looks its best in a mass planting - 9-12 is a good number in a border, drifted with a simple white cosmos such as Sonata White. Or plant in a pot, in a sunny spot on the patio, with lavender or salvias, and underplant with some colourful foliage such as pink-toned heucheras or low-growing ornamental grasses.
Velouette is certainly a pretty name for a rather lovely, and tactile flower: it means 'soft like velvet'.