Dianthus Russian Skies

Planted en masse, this carnation, also known as Dianthus Russian Skies, forms pretty fluffy clumps, which are quite blurry, covered in small flowers infused with pink and amethyst, with a striking Impressionist effect. Very easy to grow, it blooms the summer following sowing. This hardy perennial plant tolerates drought and blooms all summer on beautiful blue-green evergreen foliage. It fits everywhere in empty spaces, in the foreground of flowerbeds or in borders. This little unusual plant, with its striking charm, tolerates drought and limestone, but requires full sun to thrive.

Dianthus Russian Skies is a recent creation that has not yet been formally identified. This small perennial plant from the carnation family has rapid growth and unyielding hardiness. On its own, this carnation can cover half a square meter. It forms small dense clumps of 35 cm (14in) in all directions, composed of stems covered in tiny elongated leaves. The opposite, linear and narrow leaves, bluish green in colour, are evergreen. Flowering begins in June-July, from the first summer following sowing, and can continue late into autumn. The flowers, with 5 petals, are adorned with a very rich and unusual colour, pink tinged with amethyst, often veined with purple, more or less variable.

The remarkably dense flowering of this carnation makes it an ideal plant for rockeries or patios, but also an excellent groundcover to carpet the base of roses and other flowering or foliage shrubs, until the first frost. Its mauve pink colour perfectly matches, from July to September, that of Phlox 'Amethyst', and goes well with Sedum 'Karfunkelstein'.  Like the majority of carnations, it tolerates drought well. In dry soil, it pairs well with Cerastostigma plumbaginoides and accompanies the flowering of Aster ericoides, turbinellus, or that of shrubby salvias, Salvia x jamensis, Salvia microphylla ...