Overview

Introduce a touch of unique elegance and delightful fragrance to your garden with the Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant. This extraordinary perennial, also commonly known as Chocolate Cosmos, is celebrated for its distinctive deep maroon flowers that emit a rich, chocolatey aroma, especially on warm days. Our ‘Chocamocha’ variety is particularly prized for its compact growth habit and extended blooming period, making it a stellar addition to flower beds, borders, and patio containers. Originating from Mexico, Cosmos atrosanguineus has captivated gardeners for generations with its unusual color and scent, offering a truly sensory experience that sets it apart from other garden flora. This particular cultivar promises a more vigorous perennial habit and a longer display of its charming blossoms, ensuring a captivating presence in your outdoor space.

The Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant forms a tidy, leafy mound, typically reaching about 12 inches in height, from which elegant 2-foot tall spikes emerge, bearing its signature chocolate-scented blooms. Its unique attributes make it a conversation starter and a favorite among those who appreciate unusual and fragrant plants. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or just starting, this plant offers a rewarding growing experience with its relatively straightforward care requirements and stunning payoff. Its dark, velvety flowers provide a dramatic contrast against lighter foliage and blooms, creating visual depth and interest in any garden design.

Key Benefits

The Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant offers a multitude of benefits that make it a highly desirable addition to any garden. Its unique characteristics contribute to both aesthetic appeal and sensory delight, providing a truly fulfilling gardening experience.

• Unique Chocolate Scent: Enjoy the rare and delightful fragrance of chocolate emanating from its deep maroon flowers, especially noticeable on warm, sunny days. This distinct aroma makes the Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant a sensory highlight in any garden.
• Extended Bloom Period: This ‘Chocamocha’ cultivar is known for its longer blooming season compared to other cosmos varieties, providing continuous color and fragrance from summer until the first frost.
• Compact & Vigorous Growth: Forming a neat, leafy mound up to 12 inches, this plant develops a more vigorous perennial habit, making it an excellent choice for smaller spaces, containers, or the front of borders.
• Striking Visual Appeal: The velvety, dark maroon flowers offer a dramatic and sophisticated color palette, creating beautiful contrast and depth in your garden design.
• Attracts Pollinators: While fragrant to humans, the flowers also attract beneficial pollinators like bees and butterflies, contributing to the biodiversity and health of your garden ecosystem.
• Versatile Garden Use: Perfect for cottage gardens, formal beds, containers, or even as a cut flower to bring its unique scent indoors. The chocolate cosmos plant care is manageable for various garden applications.
• Perennial Nature: Unlike annual cosmos, this variety is a true perennial in suitable zones, meaning it will return year after year, saving you the effort of replanting. This makes Chocamocha cosmos perennial a great investment.

Plant Care & Growing Tips

Proper chocolate cosmos plant care is essential for ensuring your Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant thrives and produces its beautiful, fragrant blooms. This plant generally prefers a location that receives full sun to partial shade. Full sun (at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day) will encourage the most prolific flowering and strongest chocolate scent. In hotter climates, a little afternoon shade can help protect the plant from scorching. Ensure good air circulation to prevent fungal issues.

When it comes to watering, the ‘Chocamocha’ cosmos prefers consistently moist, but not waterlogged, soil. Water deeply when the top inch of soil feels dry to the touch. During hot, dry spells, you may need to water more frequently. Good drainage is crucial, as soggy soil can lead to root rot. For soil, a well-draining, fertile loam is ideal. Amending heavy clay soils with organic matter like compost can improve drainage and provide essential nutrients. The growing chocolate cosmos is relatively low-maintenance once established.

This particular cosmos is a tender perennial, typically hardy in USDA Zones 7-10. In colder zones, it can be grown as an annual or overwintered indoors by lifting the tubers after the first frost and storing them in a cool, dry, dark place until spring. Fertilize lightly during the growing season with a balanced liquid fertilizer every 4-6 weeks to support continuous blooming. Deadheading spent flowers will also encourage more blooms and prevent the plant from putting energy into seed production. Watch out for common pests like aphids and slugs; address them promptly with appropriate organic solutions for successful fragrant cosmos flowers.

Size & Details

The Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant you will receive is shipped in a 1 gallon nursery pot, ensuring a well-established root system ready for planting. Upon arrival, the plant will typically stand between 6 to 12 inches tall, forming a compact, leafy mound. When mature, this vigorous perennial will reach a height of approximately 12 inches for its foliage, with flower spikes extending up to 2 feet tall, showcasing its striking chocolate-scented maroon flowers. The plant has a moderate growth rate, establishing itself quickly in suitable conditions.

Expect a generous spread of about 12-18 inches at maturity, making it an excellent choice for mass plantings, mixed borders, or as a focal point in a container. This Chocamocha cosmos perennial begins blooming in early summer and continues its spectacular display until the first hard frost, offering months of beauty and fragrance. The plant is ready to be transplanted directly into your garden or a larger container upon arrival, allowing you to enjoy its unique attributes almost immediately. Providing ample space will allow the plant to achieve its full potential in both size and bloom production.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: How big does this plant get? A: The Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant typically forms a leafy mound about 12 inches tall and 12-18 inches wide. Its flower spikes can reach up to 2 feet in height, showcasing the beautiful fragrant cosmos flowers.
• Q: What size pot does it come in? A: Your Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant will be shipped in a 1 gallon nursery pot, providing a healthy and established plant ready for transplanting.
• Q: Is this an indoor or outdoor plant? A: This plant is primarily an outdoor perennial in warmer climates (USDA Zones 7-10). In colder regions, it can be grown as an annual or its tubers can be lifted and stored indoors during winter.
• Q: How much sunlight does it need? A: The ‘Chocamocha’ cosmos thrives in full sun (at least 6 hours of direct sunlight daily) but can tolerate partial shade, especially in very hot climates. Adequate sun is key for optimal blooming and scent.
• Q: Is this plant easy to care for? A: Yes, growing chocolate cosmos is considered relatively easy. It requires well-draining soil, consistent moisture, and sunlight. Deadheading spent flowers will encourage more blooms.
• Q: What condition will it arrive in? A: Your plant will arrive as a healthy, live specimen, carefully packaged in its 1 gallon pot to ensure safe transit and minimal stress.
• Q: Is it shipped in soil? A: Yes, the Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant is shipped actively growing in its nursery pot with soil, ready for immediate planting upon arrival.
• Q: How long until it blooms? A: Depending on the time of year you receive it, your plant may already have buds or be in bloom. It typically blooms from early summer until the first frost.
• Q: When is the best time to plant? A: The best time to plant your ‘Chocamocha’ cosmos is in spring after the last frost, allowing it ample time to establish before the heat of summer.
• Q: Will it survive winter in my zone? A: This plant is a tender perennial hardy in USDA Zones 7-10. If you are in a colder zone, you will need to protect it or lift the tubers for overwintering indoors.
• Q: Are the flowers truly chocolate scented? A: Yes, the deep maroon flowers of the Cosmos Atrosanguineus ‘Chocamocha’ live plant emit a distinct and delightful chocolate-like fragrance, particularly noticeable on warm, sunny days.