Astra Rose Cream is a delightful departure from standard sunflowers, showcasing quilled petals in soft pale pink and cream that create an almost peony-like effect. This multi-branching annual grows 3.5 feet tall and produces abundant flower heads over 60-80 days, thriving in hardiness zones 2-11. Unlike typical golden sunflowers, this heirloom cultivar brings a romantic, pastel aesthetic to any garden while remaining surprisingly easy to grow in full sun.
Full Sun
Moderate
2-11
?in H x ?in W
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Moderate
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Pale pink and cream quilled petals give Astra Rose Cream an unexpected elegance that stops gardeners mid-step. The plant branches abundantly, rewarding you with numerous blooms rather than a single showy face, and pollinators treat it as an irresistible oddity. At 3.5 feet tall with a relatively compact footprint, it fits naturally into borders and cottage gardens while still commanding attention with its soft, romantic coloring.
Astra Rose Cream shines as a cut flower, where its soft pink and cream palette adds understated elegance to arrangements. The abundant branching habit means you can harvest multiple stems from a single plant throughout the season, making it especially rewarding for those who enjoy having homegrown flowers in the house. Gardeners also grow it simply for the visual pleasure it brings to borders and cottage-style plantings, where its delicate coloring contrasts beautifully with bolder perennials and annuals.
No timeline data available yet for this variety.
Direct sow seeds outdoors once soil has warmed to at least 50-75°F and all frost danger has passed. Plant at a depth of 1/2 inch, spacing seeds 16 inches apart. Seeds typically sprout in 7-14 days. Thin seedlings if multiple seeds germinate in one spot, keeping the strongest plant at each spacing interval.
For cut flowers, harvest stems in the early morning when petals have fully opened but the bloom is still fresh. Use a sharp knife to cut stems at least 12 inches long, taking blooms from different branches to encourage the plant to continue producing new heads throughout the season. If saving seeds, allow some flowers to fully mature on the plant, and harvest seed heads once the back of the flower head turns brown and feels dry.
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