Growing Sweet Alyssum

A fast-blooming, carefree favorite, sweet alyssum gently and freely spreads its tiny, scented flowers about the garden.

Charming Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritime) creates a dense carpet of honey-scented flower clusters and fine-textured foliage. Blooming in shades of pink, purple, cream or white from seeds in a mere six weeks, this hardy annual attracts butterflies and bees.

'Carpet of Snow' is the classic white Sweet alyssum, growing, like most varieties, 10-15cm high and spreading to 20cm. 'Snow Crystals' has larger, white flowers on a somewhat wider plant.

'Cameo Mixture' and 'Pastel Carpet Mix' provide a mix of rose, purple and white. 'Royal Carpet' has deep purple flowers, while those of 'Wonderland' are dark rose-pink. 'Creamery' is a new variety, with lovely heads of creamy flowers all summer long.

This mat-forming plant is ideal for edging and filling in many beds and borders, adding a finishing touch without detracting from larger accent plants.

Plant white-flowered Sweet Alyssum as a carpet under Roses or over spring flowering bulbs. A swathe of Sweet alyssum makes an excellent temporary cover to fill gaps between newly planted perennials or shrubs.

For a finished look, edge a flower bed with Sweet Alyssum to provide a gentle transition between other flowers, lawn or pathways.

Try Sweet Alyssum with stones and rocks, whether in a rock garden, along a pathway, or tucked into the crevices of a stone wall.

To enjoy its perfume at close range, plant Sweet Alyssum in a window box or hanging basket.

With its low form and easy going colors, Sweet Alyssum harmonizes well with most other plants.

For an early spring show, weave Sweet alyssum 'Snowdrift' among 'Blue Elf' Violas. A bit later in the season, the petite, soft pink petals of Sweet Alyssum 'Rosie O' Day; will create a neat and tide groundcover among the spires of Delphiniums or Foxgloves.

Sweet Alyssum 'Creamery' continues to bloom even after the first light frosts of autumn/. Plant this lovely cream variety with other hardy annual flowers, such as gold and orange Calendulas and Snapdragons.

Pair white-blooming 'Little Dorrit' with trailing Lobelia 'Fountain Blue' to conceal a container's edges.

'Carpet of Snow' pairs nicely in a half wine cask with low-glowing, brilliant red 'Sunset' Dahlias.

For a bed of soft hues, combine the lilac, rose and cream blooms of 'Pastel Carpet, with pink Erigeron 'Charity' and pale blue Ageratum 'Blue Danube'.

To plant Alyssum you will need:

• Sweet Alyssum seeds
• 
  
• Fork
• 
  
• Rake
• 
  
• Compost

1. As soon as the soil can be worked, use a garden fork to loosen it to a depth of 20cm. Work in 3 cm of compost to improve drainage.

2. Remove any rocks. Rake the soil smooth and level, so that the tiny seeds will not be lost under heavy clods of earth.

3. Scatter seeds thinly. Press into the soil with your hand. Do not cover completely, as they need light to germinate.

4. Water with a fine mist, take care not to wash the seeds away. Keep moist until seeds germinate and are growing well.

5. When the seedlings are 3-5cm tall, thin to stand about 15cm apart. Transplant extra seedlings to fill bare spots in the bed.

A few secrets of success:

• Buy plants as advanced seedlings, choosing sturdy, young plants that are just beginning to show color.

• Avoid seedlings that have many flowers since, at best, they will take several weeks to produce another crop of blooms

• Sweet Alyssum enjoys full sun to partial shade. Plants become leggy and bloom poorly if shaded for more than half the day.

• Provide well-drained soil. Sweet Alyssum will grow in infertile soils, but needs good drainage to avoid rot.

• Sow Sweet Alyssum in punnets throughout the summer so you have plants on hand to fill in gaps in beds and borders.

• When sowing seeds with other annuals, mark the areas of each with a line of white flour, then label.

In early spring start seeds indoors. Four weeks before the weather warms, sow Sweet alyssum in trays or punnets. Press seeds into the soil, but do not cover as they need light to germinate.

During summer, cut plants back by half four weeks after they begin to bloom to prompt new growth.

In Autumn Sweet alyssum self-sows around old plants. If you want plants in a new location, spread spent flower heads over bare soil. Seedlings will come up next spring in cold climates, in autumn in warm climates. In late autumn, clip spent flower heads and fertilize, to encourage fresh regrowth the following spring.

Though generally free of diseases, Sweet Alyssum can develop stem and root rot in heavy, wet soils. Leaves and stems first turn yellow and then rot and die. Discard badly infected plants. Decrease watering and, in future, plant in well-drained soil or raised garden beds.