After watching Cosmo ‘Rubinato’ grow and thrive in my flowerbeds for two months, I’m ready to declare this cultivar a keeper.
When the flowers first open they are a rich, ruby-red:
When I discovered that the flowers slowly fade as they age I was disappointed at first. But then the plants really started to crank out the blooms, and I noticed how pretty they looked showcasing shades of ruby, mauve and pink all at the same time.
‘Rubinato’ is a compact cosmos that grows 18 to 24 inches tall and will bloom all summer long if you remove the spent flowers. Of all the cosmos growing in my garden this summer ‘Rubinato’ is the most floriferous and eye-catching.
I started ‘Rubinato’ from seed indoors about 5 weeks before my last frost date. You can also direct-sow the seeds in the garden after all threat of frost has passed in the spring.