Garden Cosmos
Cosmos bipinnatus
Also listed as Bidens formosa, Cosmea bipinnata
Also known as Annual Cosmos, Common Cosmos, Mexican Aster
Climate Match for your location
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Garden cosmos is a cheerful annual flower with feathery foliage and daisy-like blooms in shades of pink, white, orange, and red. It thrives in hot, dry conditions and blooms prolifically with minimal care.
Why grow it
Garden cosmos offers reliable, long-season color in hot and poor-soil conditions where many ornamentals struggle, making it useful for dry sites or areas with minimal irrigation. Unlike some annuals that require deadheading, cosmos produces flowers continuously with little intervention. It also attracts pollinators effectively while remaining undemanding about fertility, so it fills seasonal gaps without competing for resources allocated to perennial beds.
Watch out for
Cosmos can self-seed prolifically in favorable conditions, so removal of spent flower heads before seeds mature prevents unwanted volunteer plants in subsequent seasons. Very tall varieties may require staking or pinching back in windy locations to maintain compact form. Soggy soil tends to reduce flowering and encourage fungal issues, so ensure drainage is adequate even though the plant tolerates drought.
Overview
- Form
- Growth Rate
- Size
- Dormancy
- Family
- Asteraceae
Native Range
Mexico
Seasonality
Bloom Season
Season of Interest
Herb
Soft non-woody plants of the field layer.
Succession Role
Tolerances & Soil
Establishment & Care
- Establishment
- Maintenance
- Propagation
Garden cosmos is a cheerful annual flower with feathery foliage and daisy-like blooms in shades of pink, white, orange, and red. It thrives in hot, dry conditions and blooms prolifically with minimal care.
Climate Match for your location
See how well Garden Cosmos grows in your area.
Enter your ZIP code and we'll show you how this plant fits your local climate.
Why grow it
Garden cosmos offers reliable, long-season color in hot and poor-soil conditions where many ornamentals struggle, making it useful for dry sites or areas with minimal irrigation. Unlike some annuals that require deadheading, cosmos produces flowers continuously with little intervention. It also attracts pollinators effectively while remaining undemanding about fertility, so it fills seasonal gaps without competing for resources allocated to perennial beds.
Watch out for
Cosmos can self-seed prolifically in favorable conditions, so removal of spent flower heads before seeds mature prevents unwanted volunteer plants in subsequent seasons. Very tall varieties may require staking or pinching back in windy locations to maintain compact form. Soggy soil tends to reduce flowering and encourage fungal issues, so ensure drainage is adequate even though the plant tolerates drought.
Overview
- Form
- Growth Rate
- Size
- Dormancy
- Family
- Asteraceae
Native Range
Mexico
Seasonality
Bloom Season
Season of Interest
Herb
Soft non-woody plants of the field layer.
Succession Role
Tolerances & Soil
Establishment & Care
- Establishment
- Maintenance
- Propagation
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