Blue Lace Flower (Trachymene coerulea) seeds
- Delicate summer flower with pale blue to lavender, lace-like flower umbels on long, slender stems.<ai>
- Approx. 100 seeds of open-pollinated Blue Lace Flower (Trachymene coerulea), also known as Didiscus caeruleus.<ai>
- Excellent cut flower for airy summer bouquets and an attractive flowering plant for sunny borders, cottage gardens and containers.<ai>
€2.59
No longer available
Description
Pale blue flower clusters as delicate as lace
The Blue Lace Flower (Trachymene coerulea) is a delicate annual summer flower with unusual pale blue to lavender-coloured flower heads. Numerous tiny, star-shaped individual flowers are densely arranged in flat to slightly domed umbels, giving the plant an especially light, almost lace-like appearance. Its long, slender stems make it not only an attractive border plant but also an excellent cut flower for loose, natural summer bouquets.
Depending on location and growing conditions, the Blue Lace Flower reaches around 45 to 75 cm in height, and under particularly favourable conditions even more. Its finely divided, light green leaves and airy flowers are especially beautiful in cottage gardens, summer borders and naturalistic plantings. It can also be grown successfully in sufficiently deep containers.
An Australian summer flower with an unusual botanical history
The Blue Lace Flower is native to western and south-western Australia, where it grows on sandy to loamy soils. The species was botanically described in Europe as early as 1828. Its striking blue flower colour soon made it a botanical curiosity.
In the seed trade, the species is still often found under its older botanical name Didiscus caeruleus or Didiscus coeruleus. Botanically, however, it is now generally classified as Trachymene coerulea. Despite its umbel-like flower heads, the Blue Lace Flower does not belong to the carrot family, but to the Araliaceae.
Regularly removing faded flower heads encourages a longer flowering period. For the cut-flower garden, staggered sowing at intervals of two to three weeks is also worthwhile. This makes it possible to cut fresh flowers for the vase repeatedly over a longer period.
Sowing and care
Sowing and caring for the Blue Lace Flower
For early flowering, pre-cultivation from late March to mid-April is recommended. The Blue Lace Flower needs darkness to germinate: sow the seeds about 1 to 3 mm deep, cover them completely with substrate and keep the sowing as dark as possible until germination. A germination temperature of around 18 to 22 °C is favourable. Germination usually takes place within 14 to 21 days, but can sometimes take longer.
As soon as the first seedlings appear, remove the cover and place the sowing immediately in a very bright position. As the Blue Lace Flower can be sensitive to root disturbance, sowing in small individual pots or biodegradable propagation pots is recommended. Alternatively, direct sowing in the final position is also possible after the last frosts.
Plant out from mid-May in a sunny, warm and preferably sheltered position. The soil should be loose, humus-rich to sandy and, above all, well drained. A planting distance of around 20 to 30 cm is sufficient. Keep evenly moist while the plants establish; later, the Blue Lace Flower also tolerates short dry periods better. Waterlogging should, however, be avoided at all costs.
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