Sweet William - Parkland Mix

Dianthus barbatus
Perennial - flowers in second year
NCS Original

NEW FOR 2025!

Clusters of tiny single flowers on stiff upright stems that can reach up to 24", in a wide variety of pink, magenta, and white combinations. The flower buds have a cool sea urchin look to them before they transform into little pompoms of frilly blossoms. Some of the plants have a deep burgundy tinge in the leaves, which is most visible on the frilly umbels before the flowers open. Great for cut flower arrangements, Sweet William can usually last about a week in a vase. 

My grandmother used to have big flower gardens, and a bunch of Sweet William plants are among those that have survived the years since they had regular attention. I'm really impressed at how well these little flowers can hang in there. Whether it's getting overcrowded by grass and weeds, getting mowed right to the ground, or getting totally tilled under, they just keep on coming back. This might be more due to prolific self-seeding than vegetative reproduction, but now that I have a dedicated bed of these planted I'll be able to get a clear look at the longevity of individual plants. 

Most of the time the blossoms on a single plant are all the same in terms of colour and pattern. However, one plant in the yard here has multicoloured umbels, so I saved the seed from it separately. In 2023 I started 50 plants feeling very curious to see what sort of colours would show up. Dianthus is considered a short-lived perennial, and typically blooms in the second year which was the case here. No flowers in 2023, but last year I was rewarded with a nice mix, and about 34% of the plants had multicolour blossoms. Apparently if you expose the seedlings to cool spring weather you can induce them to flower in their first year, but I haven't had a chance to try that yet. Some folks like to start them mid summer so they can be transplanted in time to overwinter outdoors and bloom the following spring. 

This mix is a collection of seeds from all of the plants that I grew, so you can expect a wide range of colours and patterns to emerge. They are most certainly descended from some type of commercial mix that came from one of our local garden centres, but I have yet to find any record of their origins here at the farm. I'll let you know if I find any clues.