Orlaya grandiflora Seeds - White laceflower

Orlaya grandiflora, also known as Large-flowered Orlaya or Large-flowered Caucalis, is a wild annual plant that thrives in sunny, dry, and limestone soils. It charms with its white umbels, as delicate as lace. The plant blooms between June and August, forming light tufts of finely cut foliage. When conditions are favourable, it self-seeds spontaneously. Essential in natural gardens, it enhances all the plants that accompany it, whether in flowerbeds or bouquets.

This annual plant belongs to the Apiaceae family (Umbelliferae) and thrives in limestone and clay fields, as well as sunny rocky scree. It is native to Central and Southern Europe, the Caucasus, and North Africa. This annual plant blooms in summer, from June to August-September, in the year of sowing. It grows in light tufts, reaching 20 to 40 cm in height. Its slender stems are highly branched and bear flowers grouped in flat umbels of a very pure white, 8 cm in diameter, composed of 5 to 6 ray florets. The petals of the flowers arranged around the umbel are much longer than those of the central flowers, accentuating the lace-like appearance. Orlaya develops from a taproot. It initially forms a basal rosette, from which stems adorned with elegant and finely cut foliage emerge, finer than that of its cousin, the carrot. Flowering is followed by ovoid fruits, measuring up to 8 mm in length, with whitish, hooked prickles. When conditions are favourable, it self-seeds randomly in the garden.

The Large-flowered Orlaya is an elegant, non-invasive plant that can be directly sown in open ground, in a natural garden. It will create beautiful compositions alongside Buenos Aires verbenas, Ammi visnaga 'The Giant', Damasque nigellas, Californian poppies, and ornamental carrots, for example. In flowerbeds, it can be associated with dwarf roses and lavenders. Its flowers are also highly appreciated in floral art.