Plant Care Library

Other Names:  Chocamocha Cosmos

Description:

A well branched, compact variety producing deep maroon-brown flowers with an intoxicating chocolate scent; gives a contrasting touch to the garden or containers; best in full sun; tolerates poor soil, drought and heat

Ornamental Features

Choca Mocha Chocolate Cosmos features showy spikes of fragrant burgundy daisy flowers with brown overtones rising above the foliage from early spring to mid fall. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its ferny leaves remain green in color throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Choca Mocha Chocolate Cosmos is an herbaceous annual with a mounded form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and should be cut back in late fall in preparation for winter. It is a good choice for attracting bees and butterflies to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Choca Mocha Chocolate Cosmos is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting
• Hanging Baskets

Planting & Growing

Choca Mocha Chocolate Cosmos will grow to be about 10 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 14 inches. Its foliage tends to remain low and dense right to the ground. This fast-growing annual will normally live for one full growing season, needing replacement the following year.

This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America. It can be propagated by cuttings; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Choca Mocha Chocolate Cosmos is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor containers and hanging baskets. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a mass of flowers against which the thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.