Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’

PURPLE CROWN SWEET WILLIAMS

Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’
PURPLE CROWN SWEET WILLIAMS

Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’ is one of the loveliest of all “Sweet Williams”.

Beautiful lace patterned blooms

It bears large heads of flowers, uniquely laced and stitched with white on a background of royal purple to burgundy.
Wonderful colour and patterning with all the charm of an old-world cottage garden.

Rich and sweet scent

Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’ has the intense, sweet, enchanting scent of the old-fashioned Sweet Williams, but with enhanced modern breeding for better and longer blooming.

Superb cut flowers

Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’ has been bred as a commercial quality cut flower plant to grow in the open garden.
So you can fill vases with long-lasting cut flowers that fill the room with fetching scent.
Or enjoy it as a wonderful garden clump of colour and scent.

Edible flowers

The flowers of Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’ edible.
They have a mild flavour so use as a colourful garnish for vegetable and fruit salads, cakes, desserts, ice-cream and in cold drinks.
And you can also steep the flowers in soda water in the fridge for a few hours to give the water both flavour and scent.

Bee supermarket

Bees and our pollinating insect friends are in bliss amongst the nectar and pollen rich flowers.
So Sweet Williams are traditional companion plants for potagers, veggie patches, orchards, and of course picking flower gardens.

New & improved breeding

Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’ has been recently bred as part of the ‘Hollandia’ range of superior Williams.
So they have been especially bred for longer, stronger stems. Plus bigger flower heads. And much longer longer blooming season which starts earlier in the spring and continues well into summer.
All qualities which also make them superior garden flowers, but without losing any of the old-world cottage charm.

Hardy & easy; water-wise & frost hardy 

Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’ are very easy going plants in the garden.
Because they are frost hardy and water-wise.
So need only a minimum of additional watering to thrive and produce their best.

‘Purple Crown’ enjoys a position if Full Sun, and a scattering of lime on well-drained soil.

Dianthus barbatus ‘Purple Crown’ is a hardy evergreen perennial clump which will continue to bloom each year. So it just needs a cut back after flowering to tidy up.
Though if you leave some seed heads uncut to mature – the plants will happily self seed into the garden.
Should any baby plants sow themselves where you don’t want them – they are easy to weed out.

Fast & easy from seed to flower

However because they are so quick and easy to grow from seed, many cut flower farmers treat Dianthus barbatus as a biennial. And sow the seed in the summer so they have mature plants ready to bloom profusely in the following spring.

So from sowing the seed to flower is just 16 weeks.

40cm. High beautiful crowns of flowers all laced and stitched x 45cm Wide of evergreen foliage clump.

SEED SOWING ADVICE: QUICK & EASY
Suits beginners & gardening with kids

Sow at any time of year in a punnet indoors, or scatter in the garden in spring and summer for flowers next spring.

Sow indoors for quick & early plants: First sow the seeds in a punnet on the surface of good quality seed raising mix.
Then pat the seeds gently to the mix surface.
And barely cover the seeds with sieved mix or fine sandy grit.
Because light is needed for germination.

Now moisten the mix by standing the punnet in a shallow water bath and allowing the moisture to percolate up to the surface of the mix from below.

Then drain and place in a warm, well lit position (not in any direct sunlight).

Because temperatures of 18-22C approx. are best for rapid and optimum germination.

Continue to keep moist by misting the surface of the mix from a spray water bottle.
And covering the punnet with a clear plastic lid or bag will help to maintain consistent moisture.

Seedlings emerge in approx. 7-14 days.

Seed Count: 15 seeds per pack approx.
(We always aim to exceed the stated seed count and give a generous serve).

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