China asters revival

Renewed interest in growing cut flowers has brought the long-flowering China asters back in fashion, says Anne Swithinbank, as she looks at these colourful annuals

- Anne Swithinbank

BACK in the 1970s and ’80s, my father would spare a few rows of his allotment-style kitchen garden to grow flowers for cutting. There were gladioli, dahlias and what we called asters, but are really China asters from the genus callistephus. A seed packet of mixed colours sown direct to soil in May yielded many bunches of chrysanthemum-like flowers in pink, purple, white and yellow.

Somewhere along the line these half-hardy annuals fell from favour. Now, though, those with bright colours chime with a revival of ’60s and ’70s interior design, and the more romantic pastel shades are popular for borders, containers and wedding cut flowers.

Love, devotion, patience and charm

The China aster (Callistephus chinensis) is a half-hardy annual originating from China and Korea, where it grows wild on farmland and stony slopes. With a long history of cultivation, plants reached Europe during the 1700s. In the Victorian language of flowers, they symbolised love, devotion, patience and charm, and could convey the message ‘take care of yourself for me’. Brightly coloured All mixtures are available, offering short plants for tight spaces or taller ones whose longer stems are ideal for cutting.

To attract pollinating insects, seek out callistephus with open-centred flowers, such as’ Lazy Daisy Mixed’ and ‘Matsumoto Mixed’. There are plenty of good seed strains, but single colours sometimes need some tracking down from specialist seed suppliers. Most China asters stand at around 2ft (60cm) tall with small or large, single or double blooms from July to the first frosts.

Perfect for the garden and cutting