Experienced grower's notes on Cosmos

I've been growing plants seriously for over fifteen years and Cosmos remains a reliable favourite. For anyone starting out: the most critical thing is sowing directly into poor soil as rich soil encourages weeds. Everything else follows from that.

rabbits and slugs targeting young seedlings is the challenge that trips up most beginners and some experienced growers too. I've been growing mine in a wildlife pond margin planting for three seasons now and the results are consistently good. naturalistic aesthetic that suits modern ecological gardens is what makes it worth coming back to year after year. seed setting and dispersal in late summer is when I show it off — it earns its place fully then.