Cosmos Pinwheel White seeds - Cosmos bipinnatus

Cosmos bipinnatus 'Pinwheel White', awarded the Fleuroselect Approved Novelty 2025, combines a compact size, generous flowering and a curious "little windmill" appearance due to its ligules or petals shaped like small white tubes. This variety, intended for low borders and pots, brightens, animates and lightens all summer displays. It suits sunny gardens with little watering and feeds pollinators all summer long.

A member of the Asteraceae family, the wild Cosmos bipinnatus is native to Mexico, where it grows in open environments and disturbed ground; this species has given rise to numerous cultivars for gardens.
The 'Pinwheel White' cultivar was selected by Takii Europe and awarded during the 2025 Fleuroselect trials; it has a compact, stocky habit (around 45cm tall with a 55cm spread), a majority of tubular "petals" or ligules, generous flowering and white flower heads, 7-8 cm in diameter. The plant forms a small, well-branched clump from the base. Its leaves are intensely divided into thread-like segments, giving the foliage a very light appearance. The inflorescence is a solitary head borne on a slender stem; the central disc, composed of tiny, fertile, tubular yellow florets, is surrounded by ligulate, rolled-up florets. Flowering extends from July to September, depending on the sowing date. It continues until October if faded flowers are removed.

In the garden, plant this dwarf cosmos 'Pinwheel White' in groups of 5 to 7 to form a bright cushion at the front of a sunny border. You can pair it with annuals such as pale yellow Cosmos 'Xanthos', Zinnia 'Zahara Double White' and Love-in-a-mist 'Miss Jekyll Alba'. In poor soil, a mineral mulch and regular watering during the first few weeks are enough; afterwards, pruning the spent stems encourages repeat flowering until October. Fill a large flowering pot with zinnia, Bidens 'Yellow Charm' (yellow, groundcover), Sanvitalia procumbens 'Orange Sprite' (dwarf, groundcover) and Portulaca grandiflora 'Lady Daze Mix' (trailing, drought-tolerant).

Spanish missionaries are said to have spread cosmos from Mexico to Europe at the end of the 18th century, won over by the make-up of their corollas, which inspired the name of the genus.