Sensation Pinkie Cosmos Plants

• Variety: Cosmos bipinnatus 'Sensation Pinkie'
• Common name: Cosmos / Cosmea / Mexican Aster
• Type: Half-hardy annual
• Flower form: Single
• Colour: Mid-pink with a yellow centre
• Height: 90–120 cm (36–48 in)
• Flowering period: June–October
• Position: Full sun (minimum 6 hours)
• Soil: Well-drained, ordinary to poor fertility
• Spacing: 30–35 cm (12–14 in)
• Good for cutting: Yes – excellent
• Container suitable: Large container only, with support
• RHS AGM: Yes
• Delivered as: Jumbo plug seedling. Collection from Castle Cary also available

The classic cottage-garden cosmos: tall, generous and a clear mid-pink, with an RHS Award of Garden Merit for sheer reliability.

Sensation Pinkie – The Classic Cottage-Garden Cosmos

Cosmos 'Sensation Pinkie' is a tall single half-hardy annual, 90 to 120 cm high, with large clear mid-pink flowers and a golden centre, blooming from June to October. It holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit, given for reliability and good performance rather than novelty, and that is exactly what it offers: a dependable, prolific pink that anchors a border or a cutting patch without fuss. The flowers are big and softly rounded, held on long stems above feathery foliage.

If the picotees and colour-change varieties are the show-offs, Pinkie is the workhorse you build the scheme around. It flowers for months, feeds bees and hoverflies through its open centres, and supplies straight stems for the vase all summer. It wants full sun and poor soil; the surest way to spoil it is to plant it on rich ground or feed it, which gives lush leaves and few flowers.

A Cosmos With Real Heritage

The Sensation series is the original cottage-garden cosmos, developed by the German seed house Ernst Benary in the 1920s. Nearly a century on, Pinkie still earns its place against far newer varieties and still holds its RHS award, which tells you most of what you need to know about how it performs in an ordinary garden. It is the colour most people picture when they think of cosmos.

Planting Companions for Sensation Pinkie

Mid-pink is easy to partner. The pure white of Cosmos Sensation Purity keeps it fresh and cottage-like, while the pale, dark-throated blooms of Cosmos Daydream give a soft tonal drift of pinks. For a cooler contrast at its feet, plant it near lavender such as Hidcote or Munstead, which shares the same love of sun and lean soil and sets blue-purple against the pink.

Why Buy Your Cosmos Seedlings from Ashridge?

Your cosmos seedlings start life in our polytunnels in Somerset, hand-sown by us in peat-free compost from the best quality seed. We do not collect cosmos seed, because named varieties like Pinkie do not come true from it, so we buy in the best and grow it on ourselves. Every plant is hardened off before it leaves, and arrives as a sturdy jumbo plug with slow-release fertiliser already in the rootball.

Plants go out by next-day courier from May onwards, weather permitting, in recycled cardboard packaging that keeps them safe and ready to plant on arrival. There are real people on the phone in Somerset if you have a question. We have been growing and selling plants since 1949, hold the Feefo Platinum Service Award, and were voted a Which? Best Buy plant supplier.

Frequently Asked Questions

How tall does Sensation Pinkie grow?

Sensation Pinkie reaches 90 to 120 cm, a tall cosmos for the middle or back of a border. Space plants 30 to 35 cm apart and support them from planting time so they stand up to wind.

Does Sensation Pinkie need staking or support?

Yes. The tall, soft stems need support, and it must go in when you plant, not once they are tall. Pea sticks or horizontal netting at 30 to 40 cm both work well and disappear as the plants grow through.

Does Sensation Pinkie have an RHS Award of Garden Merit?

Yes. It holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit, awarded for reliable performance in ordinary UK gardens. It is one of the few cosmos in the range to carry the AGM.

What is the difference between Sensation Pinkie and Sensation Purity?

Same series, same tall habit and big single flowers. Pinkie is clear mid-pink; Sensation Purity is pure white. They are natural partners planted together.

Do you sell cosmos plants at your nursery?

Yes. As well as mail order, you can collect your order in person. See collection from Castle Cary for details, and our how to grow cosmos guide for growing advice.