Callistephus chinensis King Size Apricot - China aster

Callistephus chinensis 'King Size Apricot' produces large double flowers, halfway between dahlias and zinnias, in an unusual colour: a soft apricot pink. They open in a chick yellow shade before turning to this more rosy hue. Perfect in a pot or in a flower bed, this tall variety makes an excellent cut flower, long-lasting and ideal for bouquets. This annual plant is easy to grow. It can be sown in a greenhouse or directly in the ground, in a well-exposed, fertile and well-drained soil.

The China Aster, is a Chinese annual plant from the Asteraceae family with a very ancient cultivation that has produced and still produces many interesting varieties for flower beds and cut flowers. 'King Size Apricot' forms a well-branched plant and reaches 1m (3ft) in height in a few months, with a width of 40cm (16in). Its stems carry oval and toothed leaves in bright green. Flowering occurs from June to September, depending on the sowing date, in 6cm (2in) diameter heads, composed of a double row of ligulate or petal-like florets surrounding a centre of fertile florets. The plant lives only one season, the time to flower and produce seeds.

Callistephus chinensis 'King Size Apricot', with its proud habit, stands out in sunny flower beds. It is cultivated in a well-drained and fresh soil, even limestone. Somewhat old-fashioned, and also called Chinese asters, these remain highly decorative plants, planted in large clumps among other annuals or perennials. The plants flower for months if care is taken to remove faded flowers. They make beautiful and long-lasting bouquets mixed with other wildflowers. Even just for bouquets, sow them in the vegetable garden to get an abundance of flowers in late summer. Among the wide range of varieties, you will find flowers of various shapes, resembling those of chrysanthemums, with thin, very slender petals, sometimes even frizzy, in pompoms or single like those of the species. Large varieties like 'King Size Apricot' will bring life to the back of flower beds. Combine them with flowers of different shapes in all shades of blue, pink or yellow.