Question
In the 1960's my mother grew small red flowers in a planter box outside our front door. All the flowers were red, I would describe as a carnation red. She called them 'pinks' and they were double blooms, about 1 1/2" in diameter and had a very strong aroma, similar to carnations. Every time I had a date, I would cut a few and bind them together and take them to the girl.

I have grown various types of dianthus over the years and have never seen any nor can find any that are similar to those my mother grew. Do you have any idea what they may have been or what variety may be available now similar to those?

Thanks,

J

Answer
Hi Jim,
Thanx for your question.  The flower you describe is dianthus or as some call them, pinks.  They are in the same plant family as carnations.  Thompson and Morgan has a pretty good variety of seeds for these plants and they are easy to start and grow.  Some are annuals but most are biennials meaning they grow foliage the first year, bloom and go to see the next year and then the original plant dies and new ones come up from the seeds.  Here is a link to Thompson and Morgan which is a British seed company but they have a distributor here in the U.S.  Their seeds can  be pricey but the quality is worth it.  I hope this helps.
Tom


thompson-morgan.com