Cottage Pinks Dianthus is a charming perennial flower that has delighted gardeners for generations with its delightful clove scent and prolific blooms from late spring through mid-summer. This mat-forming cultivar of Dianthus plumarius grows 12 to 20 inches tall and reaches maturity in 60 to 90 days, thriving in full sun across hardiness zones 4 through 9. A frost-hardy performer that requires minimal maintenance, Cottage Pinks densely fills bare garden spaces while preventing erosion, making it an enduring choice for perennial beds and borders.
Full Sun
—
4-9
20in H x ?in W
—
Low
Hover over chart points for details
The defining feature of Cottage Pinks is the intoxicating clove fragrance that perfumes the air when blooms reach their peak. As a prolific, low-maintenance mat-former, it spreads steadily to fill gaps in the garden while remaining frost-hardy enough to overwinter reliably from zones 4 to 9. This late spring to mid-summer bloomer thrives on neglect once established, asking only for full sun and well-drained soil to produce waves of flowers year after year.
Cottage Pinks serves as an ornamental flower, prized for its fragrant blooms in perennial borders, rock gardens, and landscape beds. Its mat-forming growth habit and erosion-controlling properties make it valuable for ground cover applications where dense flowering coverage is desired.
No timeline data available yet for this variety.
Sow seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last spring frost date in temperatures between 60 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Keep soil moist but not waterlogged during germination.
Transplant seedlings outdoors after the last frost date has passed, spacing plants 24 inches apart. Harden off seedlings gradually by exposing them to outdoor conditions over 7 to 10 days before final planting.
Direct sow seeds outdoors after the last spring frost date, pressing them lightly into prepared soil and maintaining consistent moisture until germination occurs.
No formal pruning is required for this mat-forming perennial. Deadhead spent flowers throughout the blooming season to encourage continued flowering and tidy appearance. In early spring, remove any dead or damaged growth from the previous season.
Enter your ZIP code to see a personalized growing calendar for this plant.