Japanese name: ビジョナデシコ（美女撫子） Scientific name:Dianthus barbatus
[Overview]
A perennial 15–60 cm tall, treated as an annual sown in autumn.
The stem is erect and the nodes are swollen.
Leaves are simple and opposite, lanceolate.
An umbel at the stem tip bears densely packed flowers.
At the base of the inflorescence there are many bracts with long, extended tips.
The flowers are 5-petaled, about 2 cm across, and the petal tips are shallowly cut into teeth.
The fruit is a cylindrical capsule that splits into 4 at the tip when ripe, releasing black seeds.
[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed.
It prefers sunny, well-drained soil.
Keep the soil acidity neutral to slightly alkaline.
For potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
If basal fertilizer is applied, none is particularly needed afterward.
There are no particular pests or diseases.
[Notes]
The alternative Japanese name derives from the tips of the bracts extending like whiskers.
