How to Grow Love-in-the-Mist Flowers

Love-in-the-Mist is not your average looking garden-variety flower. When someone first looks at a Love-in-the-Mist flower, a scene from the Little Shop of Horrors comes to mind. The unusual appearance of this flower, also known as Devil-in-a-Bush, looks like it could have come from another planet. However, its unusual beauty makes this flower a favorite with many gardeners.

Origin

Love-in-the-Mist is native to southern Europe, North Africa and southwest Asia. Its name, whichever one is used, is derived from the flower petals lying within a ring of lacy bracts. Protruding from the center of the blue or white flower is a small green ball with spindly antlers. This is the seed ball and will eventually turn brown at the end of the growing season.

Love-in-the-Mist, an annual herbaceous, belongs to the buttercup family. It is often found in its native land thriving on neglected damp ground. Its popularity among gardeners has increased worldwide, making it a favorite in the more temperate regions.

How to Grow

The seeds of the Love-in-the-Mist flower should be sown three to six inches apart in the garden after all danger of frost has passed. They prefer full sun or partial shade, moderate soil and moderate water. It is important not to overwater this flower. They will bloom all summer and into the fall as long as you continue to sow seeds every four weeks. These lovely and aromatic flowers grow to be 12 to 24 inches in height. They will die off with the first frost of the fall season.

Varieties

Blue and white are the standard colors for the Love-in-the-Mist flower, with the blue being referred to as 'Miss Jerkyll'. However, recent hybrids have developed with a variety of colors in shades of pink, blue and lavender. The variety called 'Persian Jewels' contains a mixture of all the colors including pink, white, lavender and blue. A few other varieties are the 'Blue Midget', 'Cambridge Blue', 'Mulberry Rose', and 'Oxford Blue'.

How to Use

Freshly cut Love-in-the-Mist flowers look excellent in cut flower arrangements. The dried seedpods look stunning in dried flower arrangements. The seeds have a peppery-oregano flavor, which has been used to season some foods. Some countries use the seedpods as a moth repellent.

Seed Collecting

Seedpods of the Love-in-the-Mist flower should be completely dry before removing seeds. Simply break open the seedpod and collect the seeds within. Do this over a container of some kind so as not to lose the seeds. Clean the seeds and store in a dry dark place until ready to plant.

Sources: Wikipedia, Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds