Dianthus plants
Dianthus are versatile alpine perennials producing attractive, shapely pink, red, white or salmon flowers above a compact clump of slender, lance-shaped blue-grey leaves. Commonly known as Maiden Pink or simply “pinks” after the serrated edges to their flowers which look like they’ve been trimmed with pinking shears, dianthus makes a valuable addition to the border and can be used to great effect in container displays. They had a short flowering period until the early 1970s when a breeder developer forms that did not seed, giving modern varieties their extended blooming period of May to October. The flowers have a spicy fragrance with notes of cinnamon and clove, blooming best when grown in full sun. Dianthus belong to the family of plants which includes carnations with some varieties self-sowing, making dead-heading especially important to encourage a continuous flush of blooms. Easy to grow with both single and double flowered varieties available.