Very fond of them. I used to grow “Bachelor Buttons” (Cornflowers) at my home in California. And they are on the Royal Adderley China my mother gave me.

Yes they do look very exotic don't they. Though with me they are almost too happy and invasive. I don't grow Stokesia asters though, perhaps I should give thaem a try, even upside down they look great.

@Fernapple I started some stokesia from seed three years ago after learning they are a valuable pollinator attractor and native to my Southeast US region. They are perennial and seem to grow and spread modestly each successive year . They can tolerate fairly cold winters, however, so maybe give them a shot in a sunny spot.
[wildflower.org]

@Fernapple, @MsKathleen
Silly me! I did not realize bachelor buttons ARE cornflowers lol but the variety Fernapple has pictured resembles the ones I saw as a kid, and those are different from what I have recently grown from seed. Different varieties, I suppose, unless the different growth patterns are a response to climate?

What a wonderful garden you must have.

@Fernapple I’ve been working on it for 18 months now to try and restore it to its former beauty. My sister has been I’ll for so long that the garden went dormant. Amazing how a little water can bring back long lost bulbs and other plants!

They've got rather long this year from all the rain.

Wow. They never get to that size in the UK.

@Fernapple It must be the greater temperature though the last month it has been cold 2-20 °C. In summer it can reach 45. I was away for 2½ weeks and reckon they must have spurted on about 10 feet through good rains.
Eventually I hope to have a "forest", well row of them, growing behind & over the shed so they point toward the sun. I'm hoping to get some red flowering plants for next year. They are not fertised snd rarely watered. Mine are all pink. I wonder if change in soil pH will change the colour?

@Fernapple the fence behind the tree is 2 metres high.