Bella Tobacco is a half-hardy annual flower that bridges the gap between delicate beauty and surprising resilience. This hybrid of Nicotiana alata and Nicotiana mutabilis produces fragrant blooms from summer through fall, reaching 60 to 72 inches tall in full sun across zones 10 and 11. Flowering within 70 to 84 days from seed, it rewards patient gardeners with tubular flowers that attract pollinators while remaining untouched by deer, making it a rare ornamental that performs well in both dedicated flower beds and containers.
Full Sun
Moderate
10-11
72in H x 24in W
—
High
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Bella Tobacco's flowers open with a subtle fragrance that intensifies as temperatures cool, and its elegant form reaches substantial height without sprawling awkwardly. The combination of pollinator magnetism and deer resistance is genuinely rare in ornamental tobacco varieties. Surface sowing seeds under controlled indoor conditions yields reliable germination in just 7 to 20 days, and the plant blooms consistently from midsummer through November in appropriate climates.
Grown as an ornamental flower for garden beds and containers, Bella Tobacco serves both aesthetic and ecological purposes. Its tall, columnar growth habit makes it valuable as a back-of-border specimen or focal point in mixed plantings, while its reliable pollinator attraction supports beneficial insect populations throughout the growing season.
No timeline data available yet for this variety.
Start seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost date, maintaining temperatures between 60 and 75°F. Keep seeds moist by sprinkling with vermiculite or covering with a humidity dome. Germination typically occurs within 7 to 20 days.
Transplant outdoors after the last frost date once seedlings have developed true leaves and soil has warmed. Harden off gradually by exposing seedlings to outdoor conditions over 7 to 10 days before final planting.
Direct sow after the last frost date, pressing seeds lightly onto prepared soil without covering, as they require light to germinate.
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