Lobularia maritima
When you find a long-blooming annual eager to mound into a big ball of fragrant flowers, you remember it, add it to your garden class after class, and generally find any excuse to use it that you can get away with .
Ladies and gentlemen, dessert alyssum is that bloom. And if you aren ’ metric ton conversant with it by now, train for a crash course in how to grow gorgeous Lobularia maritima .
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Do you already include it in your gardening rotation ? good ! You ’ ll still find some excellent pro tips below, and you can consider this a refresher on how to grow this cover girl annual .
Why Sweet Alyssum?
Sweet alyssum ( L. maritima ) is flower that is felicitous to grow prolifically .
Have a few empty patches in your yard or garden that are begging to be filled with a low-growing annual ? Or are you looking for something to add soft texture to your seasonal containers ? Alyssum is the solution !
possibly you want a set-it-and-forget-it style of annual that will eagerly reseed for back-to-back years. possibly a pleasant looking ground cover is in arrange, to block weeds from sprouting up. Again, this is the implant for you .
I ’ ve used L. maritima as ground cover in vegetable gardens to prevent weeds from coming back, and it doubles as an attractant to certain types of local pollinators. Plus, it ’ sulfur low maintenance, and similar to vitex in the comfort with which it spreads .
And let ’ s not forget that gratifying olfactory property ! In the wide world of aromatic annuals, alyssum must rank near the top of the “ Most Pleasant ” category. That cover girl perfume is perfectly paired with the gentle white, pink, or purple flowers of this plant .
The crafty part is finding a argue not to grow L. maritima .
Okay, So What Does It Take to Grow?
Like all of my favorites, these annuals don ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate require much attention .
While technically perennial in coastal regions ( zones 9-11, typically ) the plant is normally listed as a “ hardy annual. ” In my know, this is because it can survive some lighter frosts and eagerly reseeds itself into the land near where it was planted .
Sweet alyssum prefers to have ample sunlight in most scenarios, specially for gardeners in more northern, cooler climates. however, if you live in a heater environment, it ’ sulfur good to give L. maritima a break from the sunlight during the hottest parts of the day .
It prefers to be placed in an area with well-draining soil, but alone needs extra watering the hottest and most dry periods of the summer. If alyssum doesn ’ thymine get enough sunlight or is besides wet, it can develop problems with stem waste and blight .
Run with the guidepost of about 1 inch of rain required per week, with additional spot watering applied during dry and blistering periods .
What Kind of Special Care Does Alyssum Need?
The answer is simple : not a lot !
Except for the aforesaid caution regarding water ( to summarize, not besides much ! ) L. maritima has few issues or special needs .
In the center of the summer, it can get a little leggy and stretched out, but you can fix that well by cutting off 1/3 to 1/2 of its growth and giving it a boost with some fertilizer. I prefer Jack ’ s classical All-Purpose Fertilizer for this, available on Amazon ) .
Jack’s Classic 20-20-20 All-Purpose Fertilizer
In a few weeks, you ’ ll have a bloom of fresh growth and flowers. Or, you can let it continue to grow in containers for a trailing spill look .
Because it self-seeds to readily, you may need to be careful of preventing alyssum from spreading to undesired portions of your yard .
errant or undesirable seed emergence has rarely been an issue for me, but if you prefer a tight and formal style to your garden, you ’ ll necessitate to be diligent .
While the seeds promptly come back from rear plants, I ’ ve noticed that each consecutive coevals is a act weaker than the one before it. I ’ ll replace my L. maritima with raw plants every three years or therefore, to keep them flushed and at their best .
The white varieties are more resistant to heat and sun, but all alyssum cultivars will stop bally during the hottest periods of the summer. Your establish international relations and security network ’ metric ton dead if it stops bally, it ’ mho equitable taking a violate to conserve energy for when the temperatures cool down a bite !
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Suggested Placements and Uses
I use this flower in annual beds to create a gentle closed chain of color to frame the rest of the plants. Because it grows into a dense thump, it besides minimizes weeds from poking through, and forms a solid bedline .
In larger vegetable gardens where contest for space and nutrients isn ’ t an issue, I like to use L. maritima as a anchor cover. It ’ mho beautiful and helps to attract pollinators, and adenine long as I keep an eye on reseed, it never grows out of bounds .
sometimes regarded as a wildflower ( though native to Europe ), it grows in identical conditions as other flowers ideal for butterfly or pollinator-style gardens, and fills the character of establish cover very well .
Placing fresh alyssum in your containers is another apposite option. Because it prefers well-drained territory, a container with proper drain holes is the arrant placement .
This flower will fill in spaces and grow wide enough to form a soft-hued balance act for your design, and it is glad to drape over the container sides without becoming a leggy or pendulous-looking matter like ivy and vinca vine tend to do .
What Pairs Well with This Flower?
Because it is normally a white, pink, or purple color, sugared alyssum pairs well with many other plants and color schemes .
I have a fascination with growing whites and silvers together ; this elusive color variation adds a universe of texture and contrast paired with any other colors you choose .
Geraniums and pansies come to mind as nice companion plants for alyssum that look cover girl side by side. I ’ ve had luck combining L. maritima with straw flowers, Persian shield, dusty miller, osteospermum, and calibrachoa adenine well, merely to name a few extra options !
L. maritima is an amazing addition to perennial beds, excessively, where you need pockets of space filled but you don ’ t want a permanent color to work about. I ’ ve nestled alyssum between black-eyed Susans, lavender, and gaillardia, and it pairs quite handsomely with any variety of thyme .
Alyssum is Pretty Sweet
From where I ’ molarity stand, it sure is ! This flower is ideal for rock candy gardens, perennial beds, containers, vegetable rows, and fair about anywhere else it can receive adequate sunlight and won ’ thymine be drowned .
Add some near your herb garden, and brace yourself for a world of olfactory property to enjoy every day in the summer .
This has been a staple in my garden for years, and it will continue to be. authentic plants tend not to be identical appealing ( if you ask me ), but L. maritima breaks that tendency and promises an easy-to-grow know for each and every gardener .
Thanks for reading ! Please let me know what you think about L. maritima in the comments below, and check back soon for more from the folks here at Gardener ’ s Path !
Pin picture and credited photos by Allison Sidhu and Matt Suwak © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Product photograph via JR Peters Inc., Eden Brothers, and True Leaf Market. Uncredited photos : Shutterstock. With extra writing and edit by Allison Sidhu.
