Guide to growing garden plants - Cheiranthus (Wallflower)
Cheiranthus is a hardy perennial but is usually grown as an hardy annual or biannual by gardeners.
Cheiranthus is also known as wallflower or Gillyflower. Cheiranthus members can vary in height from 15 to 80cm in height.
It has blossoms that cover all of its stalks and flowers from the late spring to early autumn.
Wallflowers by Garryknight; Creative commons.
Cheiranthus cheiri by Manuel M. Ramos; Creative commons.
Quick Cheiranthus Growing Guide and Facts
Common Names: Wallflower, Gillyflower.
Life Cycle: Hardy perennial usually grown as a hardy annual or biennial by gardeners.
Height: 6 to 30 inches (15 to 75 cm).
Native: Asia, Europe, Mediterranean, North and Central America.
Growing Region: Annuals: Zones 5 to 10. Grown as a perennial in zones 8 to 10.
Flowers: Late spring to early autumn.
Flower Details: Yellow, orange, pink, blue, purple many other colours and much morphology. Sweet scented.
Foliage: Silvery, purple. Evergreen.
Sow Outdoors: 1/4 inch (6 mm). Early spring or early autumn, with the exception of biennials; these should be sown out from the middle of summer to early autumn. Spacing 6 to 18 inches (15 to 45 cm).
Sow Indoors: Use vermiculite. Water from below. Germination time: one to three weeks. Temperature 65 to 75°F (18 to 24°C). Nine or ten weeks in advance. Transplant annuals and perennials outdoors before the last frost; transplant biennials in the middle of summer.
Requirements: Full sunlight or light shade. Very good drainage. Ordinary soil. Soil pH 7. Pinch tips. Water during dry periods. Propagate: cutting in spring.
Miscellaneous: Sometimes included in the Erysimum genus.
How to grow Wallflower - Cheiranthus
If planning to grow Cheiranthus outdoors then they should be planted either in early spring or early autumn (if treating as a hardy biennial then they should be planted from the end of summer) at a depth of 7 mm. They should be planted into an area of the garden that is either sunny or partially shaded. Garden Wallflowers like to grow in a neutral or slightly limy soil that has good drainage. When growing wallflowers from seeds indoors they should be prepared about ten weeks before you plant them outdoors in the early spring (middle of summer for biennials). Cheiranthus should be spaced at about 15cm (small) to 30/40cm apart (others).
Caring for wallflowers in the garden
Once established pinching back the tips will encourage the garden wallflower to become more bushy. if you are growing the plant as an hardy annual then plants should be removed once they have finished flowering. If you require more plants then you can take cuttings from wallflowers in late spring.