Fragrant Pinks (Dianthus) are a must-have for growing in pots and containers on the patio. They have a lovely old fashioned fragrance and very pretty flowers. Most Dianthus have pink, red, or white flowers with notched petals. The Garden Pink is a marvellous little perennial that grows into rounded mounds of silvery foliage that is covered with lots of carnation-like flowers that have the most glorious fragrance.
Perfect for sunny well-drained places like along the front of beds & borders, edging paths and driveways, raised beds, rock gardens, cottage gardens or container combinations in window boxes, tubs and planters, there’s many places where it can be enjoyed and savoured. Dianthus are a type of carnation that can be both divided, transplanted and they make a neat tight compact carpet of ground cover.
Care
- Apply a thin layer of compost each spring, followed by a 2-inch layer of mulch to retain moisture and control weeds.
- Water plants during the summer if rainfall is less than 1 inch per week.
- Stake tall varieties to keep them upright.
- Remove spent blooms on tall varieties, or cut back mounding plants after bloom to encourage rebloom.
- After the first severe frost, cut stems back to an inch or two above soil line.
- Divide plants every 3 to 4 years as new growth begins in the spring, lifting plants and dividing them into clumps.
