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Nicotiana 'Only the Lonely'

Steveningen
17 years ago

I can't recommend this nicotiana highly enough to all of you for both beauty and fragrance. Today was a scorcher with temps reaching near 100. Some things fried, but the heat seemed to have kicked my two plants into high gear. It's still warm outside at 10:00 p.m. as I write this and the fragrance is amazing, filling the entire yard. The flower is gorgeous too, forming a spray of white tubes at the top of beautifully formed folliage. This would be a great choice for people looking to add tall whites to catch the moonlight. Check out the link for a pic.

Of course, when the reseed next year (which I understand they do in profusion), I may be complaining about pulling up so many seedlings. But today, I love it.

Comments (25)

  • gurley157fs
    17 years ago

    I don't see a link. Try again?

  • fammsimm
    17 years ago

    This is my first year with Nicotiana ( courtesy of last year's seed swap) and I am loving it, too. It's holding up well against the TX sun,heat and drought.

    I hope it's a prolific re-seeder, because I would love to have more next year.

    Marilyn

  • tracm
    17 years ago

    Me too!! This is my first year and have two Nicotiana's that I started from seed and they are heavenly. I just cut some and put them in a vase in my kitchen. I love their fragrance. Thanks, Steven for the tip that they reseed. My back yard is stuffed with various plants and I can't imagine having a ton of Nico's next year. I will keep my eye out for seedlings.

  • hedgwytch
    17 years ago

    I have N. Alata and love it. I was able to divide mine once they started coming back up. It's a die to the ground perennial in OK and is very heat-tolerant. Everything that I divided and moved early this spring has developed into nice-sized clumps and blooming! I have beeen thrilled with this plant. I will be including seeds of it in the CG swap!

    HW

  • flutterby81
    17 years ago

    For you first timers, nicotiana will also send up new flower stalks if you cut it back. Last year I didn't cut it back until the middle of September and I still got more flowers (we get frost in early Oct).

  • MizJoy
    17 years ago

    Steven, this is one of my favorites too. I have it planted under my kitchen window and the fragrance on hot evenings is heavenly. I also love the big, bold foliage of this flower. Mine grow 5-6' tall. I haven't had any problems with it reseeding all over the place. It's pretty well behaved for me, although it produces copious amounts of seed.

  • fammsimm
    17 years ago

    Thanks for the info., flutterby. I'm liking this flower more and more!

    Marilyn

  • debbieca
    17 years ago

    I don't think the reseeding is an issue. Yes, they reseed but they are easy to pull and not prolific.

  • MizJoy
    17 years ago

    Here's a link to a picture of one in my garden.

    Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:685688}}

  • blossomgirl
    17 years ago

    Wow----
    I want some of the seeds..please send in to seed trade swap for fall. I will put that on my "want this" list..

    I am busy harvesting my columbine, hollyhocks, poppies,ladies mantle and gas plant. Also red valerian-which is a fav of mine-have it everywhere.
    Gigi

  • Eduarda
    17 years ago

    I'm so sad :-( I got seeds for this lovely plant from our swap, sowed them and they promptly germinated. Then they seemed to got some sort of mold (might have been too much humidity in the container) and even though I did transfer the seedlings to the ground they didn't survive :-( I was really disapointed, I had high hopes for it... I hope I get some seeds again from our swap to try again...

    Eduarda

  • hedgwytch
    17 years ago

    Eduarda, just direct sow them! Especially in your climate-water them in well and stand back! LOL!

    HW

  • thinman
    17 years ago

    Count me in among the nicotiana lovers, and Only The Lonely looks like a stunner. I wonder if the propagator who named it is a Roy Orbison fan.

    I made a mistake with my nicotiana this year and counted on reseeding for plants this year. It worked fine, inasmuch I got a thousand seedlings or so, but the ones I didn't pull are still so small, it's going to be August before I see any blooms. Oh, well, ya live, ya learn.

    ThinMan

  • nberg7
    17 years ago

    Funny you should say that ThinMan because upon reading this post earlier today I've been singing that song in my head and can't get it out! Bum, bum, bum, da-dddoo-wa. When you said you didn't pull some- did you lift some and replant elsewhere or are they going to be slow in blooming because they're crowded?

    Steven- I love it. Are you going to join in the seed swap this year? Enquiring minds want to know!
    -Nan

  • lynnencfan
    17 years ago

    I am growing nicotiana for the first time this year also and from what y'all are saying I planted it too far from the house. It sure does stand out in the evening out in the new perennial bed tho. Mine is just starting to bloom....

    Lynne

  • PattiOH
    17 years ago

    Sounds reasonable that the name would have been selected by a Roy Orbison fan. I remember reading that the "Lonely" part of the name refers to it's being so tall that it stands out from everything else (5'+ as Mizjoy said!).

    Excellent plant suggestion, Steven. One of the things that seems to be lacking in my garden is fragrance!

    Patti

  • Eduarda
    17 years ago

    Hedgwytch, unfortunately I do not have good luck with direct sowing. My soil is on the heavy side and I have birds galore. The blackbirds especially get into the garden and strip it out of any seed I may have scattered on the ground. They strip the mulberry tree entirely, we hardly try any mulberries at all! They even peck in pots with seeds, if they are not covered! So I prefer to winter sow seeds, because the covered containers give seeds a much better chance to survive the birds. I love to have so many birds around the garden, though, so I'm not complaining. I hope to try this lovely plant again this year.

    Eduarda (definitely a Roy Orbison fan)

  • hedgwytch
    17 years ago

    Yikes Eduarda! Do you have some perennials that you could scatter the seeds around in? I have mine mixed in with roses and irises. Maybe then the other plants could help protect it. I'm in OK and we have heavy clay, but we also use a lot of mulch to help keep the moisture in. That probably helps protect the seeds, too.

    Your garden sounds wonderful.

    HW

  • MizJoy
    17 years ago

    I originally started these seeds in my basement under florescent lights. I got all the info on how to on the gardenweb forum. I'm in zone 8 so these have been perennial for me, except this year because we had a couple extremely cold days in early spring only about half survived. I also grow Nicotiana Alata which are definitely worthwhile too. They aren't quite as tall as 'Only the Lonely' but they're lovely & a little different flower form.

  • PRO
    Nell Jean
    17 years ago

    First year for me, too. I started some from seed, the tall kind, not named. They're in white and colors too and I put them all around. Some thrived better than others, especially the ones in full sun.

    The fragrance is, as said above, just wonderful at night -- spicy and delightful.

    Nell

  • fernzilla
    15 years ago

    Hey Ya'll:

    I got a couple of six packs of mixed Nicotiana this week. I took the White and Planted in huge planters along with the Pale Pink. I wasn't to sure about getting these, as i loved the flowers,but thought the foliage was kinda yucky. It reminds me of Zinnia foliage which is also kinda yucky. The more I read about them the more i felt i was going to fall in love with this plant.
    I use almost all White Flowering plants,becuase I live in Memphis, and it gets so hot and humid here, they seem to fool the eye into thinking it's cooler.
    I see there are two varietys of the White a taller more elongated flower, and the kind I got which has a shorter tube on the flower and seems a bit larger.
    i also use alot of dark purple foliage plants to offset the White, so I ordered some seeds of a variety called Perfume Deep Purple. I will set them out and see what happens. I have high hopes for these.

  • miartsafire
    15 years ago

    Does anyone have any suggestions on how to overwinter Nicotiana? I live in New Hampshire and just discovered this plant at our neighborhood greenhouse. She is always introducing new plants but is treating it like an annual, which in this area it is.

  • kathi_mdgd
    15 years ago

    I also have Nicotiana,but mine are in a huge pot,and this year DH threw some other seeds in with it,like babys breath and calendulas.So now the pot is nice and full.I'll have to try and remember to get pictures of it this week.
    Mine are pinks and reds.
    Kathi

  • gloriosa321
    13 years ago

    I absoublutely LOVE Nicotianas and I would be very glad to trade any seeds that anyone has.

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