How to Grow Nicotiana Flowers

About Growing Perennial Nicotiana Plants in Your Home Flower Garden

Gardeners who enjoy growing Nicotiana flowers enjoy great, fragrant perfume. It’s a flower that is grown for its fragrance. Plants are native to warm tropical and subtropical areas of North and South America. Perennial Nicotiana plants are members of the tobacco family.

Nicotiana plants are easy to grow. Flowers begin to appear and bloom in the early summer. The plant will rebloom all season. Flowers open up in the late afternoon and are on fragrant display all evening. Five-pointed florets are trumpet-shaped, with red, white, rose, pink, yellow, and lavender colors. Different varieties grow one to three feet tall and produce flowers on slender stems.

Did you Know? It should come as no surprise that Nicotiana is also called Tobacco Flower, or Flowering Tobacco. And…..yes, Nicotiana has high concentrations of nicotine.

Nicotiana looks good in mass plantings such as bedding plants, or in clumps. You will want them to grow in groups, to enjoy their fragrance. They are best placed towards the middle of the flower garden. Try some on or near your patio or deck. Make sure to locate some under a window of your house. When the plants are in bloom, their fragrance can waft in through an open window. They can be grown in pots and containers, too.

Nicotiana flowers attract hummingbirds to their trumpet-shaped flowers.

Important Note: Plants are poisonous if swallowed. Keep away from children or pets.

Nicotiana Flower Plant Specifications

Flower colors: Colors include Green, pink, red, white, and yellow.

Flowers Bloom: Summer to Fall.

Plant Height: Three to five feet tall.

Ideal Soil pH: 5.5 – 6.5.

Light Requirement: Full to partial sunlight.

Hardiness Zones: 10 – 11

Are Plants Toxic? Yes. It is poisonous to humans, pets, and farm animals.

Deer Resistant? Yes, the plants are resistant to deer and rabbits.

Native To: South America.

Plant Type: Perennial.

Botanical Name: Nicotiana alata

Other Names: Flowering Tobacco, Jasmine Tobacco, Sweet Tobacco, Tobacco Flower, Ornamental Nicotiana.

Are Nicotiana Flower Plants Edible?

NO!!

All parts of the plant are highly toxic if ingested. It can cause a variety of serious health problems. Keep young children and away from this plant.

Medicinal Applications for Nicotiana Flowers

Despite the toxicity of this plant, Nicotiana has a variety of herbal and home medicinal uses. Here are some of them:

Use it as an anesthetic.
Use it as a topical treatment for pain relief from wounds and other skin injuries.
Nemesia has anti-inflammatory properties.
It is anticonvulsive.
Sometimes it is used as an expectorant.

Important Note: As a toxic plant we strongly recommend you do not make home remedies from this plant without the proper training.

Light Requirements

Grow perennial Nemesia plants in bright, direct, full sun. It grows best in six to eight hours of bright direct sunlight per day. Select a planting location where they will receive six to eight housers of full sunlight.

The plants grow in partial sunlight. However, if there s too much shade, the plant will produce fewer blooms.

In warmer regions of the country, plant them where they are shaded from the hot afternoon sun.

Perennial Nicotiana Plant Propagation

Nicotiana plants are grown from seeds. Nicotiana seeds can be directly seeded into your flower garden, or seeded indoors for transplanting later. An early, indoor start, translates into an earlier bloom. Sow seeds early in the season and cover lightly with 1/8″ or less of fine garden or seed starting soil.

Seeds germination period requires two to three weeks. For indoor starts, try a seedling germination mat.

Do not set out seedlings until after the last frost date in your area. Plants are susceptible to frost. The ideal plant spacing is twelve inches apart.

Final Plant Spacing: Space plants 12 to 14 inches apart.

Days to Germination: 7 – 14 days.

About Seed Germination

How to Grow Nicotiana Flower Plants

Perennial Nicotiana is easy to grow. They are tender perennials that are often grown as annuals.

Plants flower and bloom best in partial shade to full sun. Plants prefer rich, well-draining soils. Mix a healthy dose of compost into the soil before planting.

Plants like a lot of water and nutrients. While they like lots of water, they do not like wet soil. Keep soil moist, not wet. Add fertilizer when planting and every month during the season. Use a high phosphorous formula just before the first blooming period.

These plants have “sticky” leaves. The leaves and stems capture debris and is unsightly. It can be difficult to remove without damage to the leaves. Be careful when weeding or applying compost and mulch.

Nicotiana will begin to bloom in early summer. After each set of blooms, prune plants as needed. Pinch or deadhead spent flowers to promote reblooming.

Plants are annuals that are very susceptible to frost. Cover them up whenever cold temperatures are expected.

Nicotiana plants are good “re-seeders”. They will drop lots of tiny seeds for next year’s crop. Mark off the area and allow new plants to grow in the spring. Do not disturb the soil until seedlings have begun to grow. Thinning seedlings as necessary.

How to Grow Nicotiana Plants in Containers

Perennial Nicotiana flowers are not commonly grown in containers and flowerpots. However, they do look nice in a floor container on balcony or deck. As an added benefit, you can bring them indoors in the Fall to grow as a houseplant, if you have a sunny location for them.

In addition to the normal steps for growing them, here’s how to care for them in a flowerpot or container:

It is important to have a drain hole to allow excess water to drain from the pot.
Keep an eye on the moisture level. Check the plants every day or two, especially in extended periods of hot, dry weather.
Keep the soil moist, but not wet. It is okay to let the top of the soil begin to dry between watering.
When watering the plants, thoroughly wet the soil. Excess water will drain through the hole in the bottom of the flowerpot.
Nutrients in a flowerpot are limited. So, use fertilizer spikes to feed the plants. Or, apply a light solution of liquid fertilizer once a month.
Select a sunny to partly sunny location on your deck.

Pruning Nicotiana Plants

This plant looks good with just a little pruning. After the plant has reached a couple feet tall, pinch back the growing tip of the main stem. New stems will soon appear, giving the plant a nicer, bushier appearance. Then, maintain the appearance of the plant by removing and dead or sickly or insect-damaged leaves as soon as they appear.

Deadhead spent blooms as soon as the flower dies. This promotes the development of new flower buds. Late in the season, allow a few spent blooms to remain on the plant Then, you can harvest seeds for next year’s crop.

Insects and Plant Disease

Aphids, gnats, and other insects can pose a problem. Treat with insecticide or repellents, as needed.

Fungus diseases can occur. Thus, use a general-purpose fungicide in humid weather, and when problems appear.

Also see: Plant Problems – Identify the causes and find the cures.

Overwintering Perennial Nemesia Plants

Nemesia plants are warm weather plants. If you live in a more northerly region, make sure to bring the plant indoors before the first frost in the Fall. To succeed, you need to have a sunny window. Before you do so, check for bugs and insects on the plant or in the soil.

First, if it is not already in a container or flowerpot, dig the plant out of the ground with as much of the root system as possible. Next, pot it up. Then, bring it indoors and place in a warm sunny window for the winter months.

Learn more about how to bring plants indoors.