Aster Ostrich Plume

The heirloom aster with serious retro charm. Ostrich Plume has been grown for over a century, prized for its uniquely shaggy, plumed flower form — massive heads composed of long, curled and twisted petals that resemble the feathery plumes of an ostrich, in shell-pink, deep violet, lavender, crimson, and pure white.

If you love the look of expensive florist chrysanthemums but want something easy to grow from seed, this is the answer. Flowering August to October when the cutting garden needs it most. Listed on the RHS Plants for Pollinators.

• Callistephus chinensis 'Ostrich Plume' — Half-Hardy Annual (H2)
• Height: 50–60cm | Flowers: August–October
• Sow indoors March–April; surface sow with fine vermiculite
• Full sun; rich, well-drained soil — space 30cm apart
• Outstanding for cutting — long vase life
• RHS Plants for Pollinators listed

Grow it alongside Duchess Mixed for a late-summer cutting garden that covers every aster form from incurved peony to shaggy plume.