Lacy White
Trachymene coerulea
Photo: Calistemon · Wikimedia Commons · (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Pure white, 2-2 1/2" blooms are held aloft on stiff stems. Flowers have a mild, clean fragrance and delicate appearance. Plant habit is branching and upright with few leaves. Plants produce blooms for up to two months in our trials.
Harvest
95-100d
Days to harvest
Sun
Full sun
Zones
1–11
USDA hardiness
Difficulty
Easy
Planting Timeline
Showing dates for Lacy White in USDA Zone 7
All Zone 7 flower →Zone Map
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Lacy White · Zones 1–11
Growing Details
Zone-by-Zone Planting Calendar
| Zone | Indoor Start | Transplant | Direct Sow | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zone 1 | May – June | July – August | July – September | — |
| Zone 2 | April – May | June – July | June – August | — |
| Zone 11 | January – January | January – February | January – March | — |
| Zone 12 | January – January | January – February | January – March | — |
| Zone 13 | January – January | January – February | January – March | — |
| Zone 3 | April – May | June – July | June – August | — |
| Zone 4 | March – April | June – June | June – July | — |
| Zone 5 | March – April | May – June | May – July | — |
| Zone 6 | March – April | May – June | May – July | — |
| Zone 7 | February – March | April – May | April – June | — |
| Zone 8 | February – March | April – May | April – June | — |
| Zone 9 | January – February | March – April | March – May | — |
| Zone 10 | January – January | February – March | February – April | — |
Succession Planting
Lacy White runs 95-100 days from transplant to harvest, so two rounds of starts will give you overlapping flushes of cut stems instead of one big all-at-once glut. Start your first round indoors in February and transplant in April. Start a second round in March and get those in the ground by early May. That spacing pushes your two peak harvests apart by three to four weeks across late June into August.
Don't push past a late-May transplant date in the Southeast. Lacy White needs mild temperatures to set buds cleanly, and once daytime highs are consistently above 90°F, stem quality drops fast — you get shorter internodes and flowers that open before you can get them in water. Two successions is about the practical limit before the heat shuts things down.
Complete Growing Guide
Growing Lacy White (Trachymene coerulea) flower. Light: Full sun. Hardy in USDA zones 1 to 11. Days to maturity: 95. Difficulty: Easy.
Harvesting
Lacy White reaches harvest at 95 - 100 days from sowing per Johnny's Selected Seeds. Expect 2-2 1/2" at peak. As an annual, harvest continues until frost ends the season.
This is an ornamental variety — not grown for harvest. Enjoy in the garden landscape.
Storage & Preservation
For fresh storage, keep Lacy White cut flowers in a cool location (65-72°F) away from direct sunlight and ripening fruit. Store in a clean vase with fresh, cool water mixed with flower preservative, changing water every 2-3 days. Shelf life is typically 7-14 days depending on conditions. Preservation methods include: (1) Air drying—bundle stems and hang upside-down in a warm, dry location for 1-2 weeks to create dried arrangements; (2) Pressing—place blooms between absorbent paper and weigh down for 2-3 weeks for botanical crafts; (3) Freezing—freeze individual blooms on a tray before storing in airtight containers for later decorative use, though texture changes.
History & Origin
Lacy White is open-pollinated, meaning seed saved from healthy plants will produce true-to-type offspring. Listed in the Johnny's Selected Seeds catalog.
Trachymene coerulea is a herb in the family Araliaceae. It is native to Western Australia.
Advantages
- +Pure white blooms create elegant, sophisticated floral arrangements and bouquets
- +Mild fragrance adds subtle charm without overwhelming delicate flower designs
- +Stiff stems hold flowers aloft, requiring minimal support or staking
- +Branching habit produces abundant blooms over extended two-month flowering period
- +Easy growing difficulty makes Lacy White accessible to beginner flower growers
Considerations
- -Few leaves on plants may limit natural appearance in some arrangements
- -Extended 95-100 day maturity requires patience before first blooms appear
- -Delicate appearance suggests potential fragility in harsh weather or handling
- -Tall upright growth habit may require spacing to prevent crowding issues
Companion Plants
Sweet Alyssum and Cosmos are the two I'd actually prioritize alongside Lacy White. Alyssum draws parasitic wasps and hoverflies — the kind that prey on aphids — and it stays low enough that it won't shade out your cut-flower stems. Cosmos works as a pollinator magnet on the same warm-season schedule, so they're not competing for timing. Marigolds are worth running along the bed edges; the scent disrupts the host-finding behavior of several common pest insects, and in our zone 7 Georgia garden they're easy to direct-sow right when you're transplanting your Lacy White starts in April.
The plants to keep at a distance are Black Walnut, Eucalyptus, and Fennel. Black Walnut produces juglone — a compound that moves through the soil and is lethal to a wide range of annuals, Lacy White included. Eucalyptus releases allelopathic oils that suppress growth in neighboring plants. Fennel is a different case; it's not toxic, but it exudes root compounds that stunt almost everything planted within a foot or two of it, and cut-flower annuals are not the exception.
Plant Together
Marigolds
Repel nematodes and aphids while attracting beneficial insects
Nasturtiums
Act as trap crops for aphids and cucumber beetles
Sweet Alyssum
Attracts beneficial insects like hoverflies and parasitic wasps
Lavender
Repels moths, fleas, and mosquitoes while attracting pollinators
Cosmos
Attracts beneficial insects and provides complementary flower colors
Zinnia
Attracts butterflies and beneficial predatory insects
Catmint
Repels ants, aphids, and rodents while attracting bees
Borage
Attracts pollinators and repels tomato hornworms and cabbage worms
Keep Apart
Black Walnut
Produces juglone toxin that inhibits growth of many flowering plants
Eucalyptus
Releases allelopathic compounds that suppress nearby plant growth
Fennel
Inhibits growth of most garden plants through allelopathy
Troubleshooting Lacy White
What you'll see, why it happens, and what to do about it.
Seedlings damping off at soil level — stems pinch to a thread and topple, usually within the first 2-3 weeks after germination
Likely Causes
- Pythium or Rhizoctonia fungal complex — both thrive in cold, waterlogged seed-starting mix
- Overwatering combined with poor drainage in trays
What to Do
- 1.Water only when the top half-inch of mix is dry; bottom-watering keeps the stem base drier than watering from above
- 2.Use a sterile, well-draining seed-starting mix — not garden soil or old reused mix
- 3.Run a small fan on low near your seedling trays to keep air moving around the stems
Plants stall at 4-6 inches with yellowing lower leaves and no new bud development, well past day 60
Likely Causes
- Nitrogen deficiency from low-fertility soil or failure to feed after transplanting
- Root-bound transplants that were held too long in small cells before going in the ground
What to Do
- 1.Side-dress with a balanced granular fertilizer (10-10-10) at about 2 tablespoons per plant, worked shallowly into the soil
- 2.If plants were started in February and still sitting in 72-cell trays in late April, get them in the ground — Lacy White doesn't like being held
- 3.Confirm soil pH sits between 6.0 and 7.0; outside that range, nutrients lock up regardless of what you've applied
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do Lacy White flowers last in a vase?▼
Is Lacy White a good choice for beginners?▼
Can you grow Lacy White flowers in containers?▼
When should I plant Lacy White seeds?▼
What does Lacy White's fragrance smell like?▼
Growing Guides from Wind River Greens
Where to Buy Seeds
Sources & References
External authority sources used in compiling this guide.
- BreederJohnny's Selected Seeds
See the Methodology page for how this data is sourced, what's AI-assisted, and known limitations.