Cornflower Red Boy
Cornflower Red Boy
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Cornflower 'Red Boy' Seeds
While the classic blue cornflower is an icon, 'Red Boy' brings a warm, vibrant energy to the patch. It produces masses of fully double, ruffled blooms in a rich shade of carmine-red (think crushed raspberries) that glow beautifully in the sunshine.
This variety has all the toughness and reliability of the wild blue type but with a sophisticated colour palette. Standing tall on silver-grey stems, it creates a "ruby and sapphire" effect when planted alongside blue varieties, or adds a punchy, jewel-toned highlight to white and pastel borders. It is a prolific cut flower—the more you pick, the more it blooms.
Read our full UK growing guide for Cornflowers here: Cornflowers in Your Cottage Garden: Growing Guide for UK Climate
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🌿 Understanding the Plant
Cornflower is a Hardy Annual.
It completes its life cycle in one season. Like its wild ancestors, it is incredibly tough and can withstand a British winter as a small seedling.
The "Autumn Secret": For the biggest, earliest, and most floriferous plants, sow the seeds in **September**. They will establish roots over winter and flower weeks ahead of spring-sown plants next year.
🌱 Growing Guide: How to Sow and Grow
Cornflowers resent root disturbance, so sowing them where they are to flower is best.
Germination:
Sow directly outdoors in Autumn (Sept) or Spring (March-May). Scatter seeds onto raked soil and cover lightly (3-5mm deep). Keep moist. Germination takes 14-21 days.
Where to Sow:
They demand **full sun**. They thrive in well-drained soil and are actually happier in "poor" soil than rich compost. Too much fertiliser produces lots of leaves but very few flowers.
Care While Growing:
Support: 'Red Boy' is a tall variety (up to 90cm). In windy gardens, give them a little support with twiggy sticks or netting to stop them flopping.
Deadhead: Snip off the dead flower heads regularly to force the plant to keep producing new buds until the frost.
📋 Plant Specifications
| Latin Name | Centaurea cyanus |
| Common Name | Cornflower 'Red Boy' |
| Hardiness | H7 (Very Hardy - to -20°C) |
| Light Required | Full Sun ☀️ |
| Height | ↕️ 75cm - 90cm (Tall) |
| Spread | ↔️ 30cm |
| Spacing | 🌱 30cm apart |
| Great for | ✂️ Cut Flowers 🐝 Bees & Butterflies 🥗 Edible Garnish 🏡 Cottage Gardens |
| Seed Count | Approx. 200 seeds per packet |
🤝 Perfect Garden Companions
The raspberry-red of 'Red Boy' works beautifully in patriotic or jewel-toned themes:
- 🔵 Cornflower 'Blue Ball': The Classic Contrast. Planting Red, White (Snowman), and Blue cornflowers together creates a vibrant, patriotic "Union Jack" display that hums with bees.
- ☁️ Ammi Majus (Queen Anne's Lace): The Florist's Mix. The flat, white lacy heads of Ammi provide a calm, neutral background that makes the red cornflowers really pop in a vase.
📅 Sowing & Flowering Calendar
Sow outdoors in autumn or spring. Flowers mid-summer to autumn.
| Month | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sow Outdoors | 🟢 | 🟢 | 🟢 | 🟢 | 🟢 | |||||||
| Flowers | 🌸 | 🌸 | 🌸 | 🌸 |
⚠️ Edible Flowers
Cornflower petals are 100% edible. They have a mild, slightly spicy clove flavour. Use the bright red petals to decorate cakes, salads, or freeze them in ice cubes for summer drinks.
🏆 Officially Recognised Excellence
Cornflowers are a lifeline for nature. Centaurea cyanus is listed on the RHS Plants for Pollinators list, producing high-quality nectar that is easily accessible to bees and butterflies.
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