The mystery of the Cosmos....

[ErrolTheDragon]

I grew quite a lot of Cosmos from seed this year. I don't think I was particularly late planting them out, but some of them took a heck of a long time to flower (some have barely started) but most of them have grown really tall (5-7ft) rather than the 3-4 according to the seed packet. I did pinch them out to try to encourage bushiness.
I'm not unhappy with the height, now I've staked them, but I'm afraid they're going to be cut down in their prime when the frosts start, or knocked around too much by autumn winds. Any ideas what I might do differently next year?

No idea but I just wanted to congratulate you on your excellent thread title!

Mine didn't grow at all this year. Just a couple of seedlings which quickly died or got munched.

No idea but I love Cosmos. Is everywhere in South Africa

I grew cosmos from seed for the first time ever. They flowered relatively late (although I don’t know when they usually flower, got the seeds from a gardening magazine) and are still giving me a lovely show.

Was having the same conversation with my dm, hers are normally quite short but this year have gone crazy, really tall and still flowering. She was convinced it was the seeds she used- collected from last years flowers bit I used new ones and the same happened. I just think it's a weird year, some things have done really badly whilst others- cosmos- have gone crazy!

Mine started flowering late too but have been stunning, only about 3' tall but masses of flowers

Random photo of rhubarb there too, that'll teach me to post while watching Strictly 🤦‍♀️

Ours are very late flowering and really really tall. Very odd

I still have some that are almost at flowering point. Planted at the right time.
Loads of buds, which the frost will probably kill very soon.

Ah... so the mystery of the Cosmos seems to be pretty much universal.

Yours looks amazing op. Did you feed them too ? I’ve tried to save seeds from mine, but they’re just soggy balls. I live in a very wet area of the country.

I find this happens with the large flowered pink ones. It doesn’t seem to matter whether their sowed seeds or self sowed. It’s usually the ones with Sensation in the title.
Smaller varieties like Candy Stripe and Double Dutch White, don’t grow so tall.

Ours have been the same this year - late, crazy tall and now flowering profusely!

It's nice to have them here into November for a change

Weird year for lots of things I think.

Front garden still full of very tall purity. Look great still. We often don’t have a frost so I’m curious to see how long they last. They did start flowering really late (grown from seed and they don’t self seed here). In the north west so the wind will get them I think.

I'm in the north west too, we do get frosts - not quite close enough to the coast/Gulf Stream moderated areas to avoid them. But the forecast looks to be mild for the next week at least.

My mid pink cosmos are over a foot taller than the white ones and they started to flower a month after the whites. I've some pale yellow ones that have only just started to flower. My dark pinks are very small and have just started to produce a couple of flowers. All in the same bed so must be seed related.

Lovely to have lots of flowers at this type of year though 😀

Yes, it is! I don't usually like cutting flowers from my garden for the house, but there are so many I've got a couple of posies. Well, one of them was a piece DH snapped with the mower yesterday, that's the problem with them leaning over the lawn.

If there's a frost forecast i may fill every vase and other suitable receptacle in the house!

Same here! I've never grown Cosmos before so wasn't sure if it was just me! Grew them from seed aaages ago and now they are hugmungus. They're so pretty but I thought they were a summer flower?

The seed packet (I've got some more for next year) gives the flowering time as July to October inclusive so I guess it's not unusual for them still to be flowering.

In todays update of Cosmos Do The Funniest Things, I was at my allotment today and saw my best display of cosmos so far... on the plants that I'd cut down on my last visit as they weren't flowering! I'd left them in a pile as I needed to sort my compost bins, and they somehow made a lastest-ditch display.

Odd creatures.

Are they in sun or shade? If it's a bit shady then that would explain their legginess.

They get a fair amount of sun. Not full sun all day, but some of it, and not really shady.

Great thread!

I sow cosmos seeds most years, because they’re so often given away with gardening magazines, and this is the first year they’ve survived the snails and flowered. Mine too are very tall. I was blaming the cool, wet summer.

If you don't like them so tall OP you can get dwarf ones. that's what i planted this year as i didn't want the hassle of staking etc.

they've been quite pretty in pots - but like everyone else's they were quite late and are looking at their best now. i thought they'd be well past it by this time.

it was these ones i planted: www.amazon.co.uk/Johnsons-Cosmos-Dwarf-Sensation-Mixed/dp/B005AFCPRG/ref=asc_df_B005AFCPRG/?hvlocphy=1007326&linkCode=df0&hvptwo&psc=1&psc=1&hvnetw=g&hvadid=205312686904&hvpone&hvlocint&th=1&hvpos&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl&hvqmt&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&hvtargid=pla-456889167964&hvrand=8254784817344604278

Yep mine also 6-7 feet tall! This lot self seeded from some I had last year which bloomed well into November.

Mine are huge thugs, especially the pink. The white ones have all but disappeared. Mine are over six feet too, and have been blown around as I didn’t stake them.