Nigella damascena, lol. The first time I was successful growing it I was stunned at how pretty the blooms were. They're winter growers here so I sow the seeds on Thanksgiving along with Chinese forget-me-nots, larkspur, "Alaska" nasturtiums, Lathyrus sativus(azure pea), and a few others. Most of my seeds have to be bought and planted every year since it gets too hot here for seed production of these cool weather plants. For summer I really, really love Mina lobata, it looks like stained glass to me.

Ilene, It is a pretty flower, but I don't know the name of it. There are literally hundreds of named dianthus selections, and about the time I figure out which is which, they bring out a whole bunch of new hybrids. I am curious, though. If you don't know the name of this particular one, how do you know it is a biennial? Within the dianthus family, some are annual, some are perennial and some are biennial. I have some perennial ones that bloom from about February through November or December and stay evergreen except they freeze to the ground if we go down below about 15 degrees. They regrow pretty quickly though. I love dianthus and have had my best luck with them in raised beds, so they must (in general) like well-drained soil. As far as starting them from seed, I have done it, but not really with spectacular succeess. In the year I raised them from seed, it took them forever to attain a decent size, and then, they died after I transplanted them into the garden. I can grow ALMOST anything from seed successfully, although not always on the first try. LOL Dianthus, at least for me, seem really picky and harder to raise from seed than most flowers. Dawn

Hello everybody, sorry I haven't gotten back to and replied. My Internet was temporarily down for the last couple weeks. I do have plenty of seeds left My messages on this site have been completely bombarded and theres too many to keep up with, so anybody interested email me at Andrew.hopper2012@gmail.com Please only send 1 email at a time so I don't get overloaded with emails. Thank you everyone Andrew

As for changing color, perhaps what happened is that some of the seed fell and germinated, starting a new plant. If not a species, any new plants could have different features, including color. I lived in a little community outside of the Boston, MA area where many of the long-time residents had the "grape" scented lavender tall bearded iris, and the same fragrant, simple flowered pinks with a maroon eye on pink, fragrant of clove. The foliage was glaucous and fine. I moved and took my plants (some from the rental house) with me. They looked so lovely with the blue veronica that bloomed at the same time. I had a large raft of them (which, IMO, is how they look best, if you have the space). Walking past them was an olfactory treat. Unfortunately, I had to leave me gardens on their own for some years and the chipmunks and voles found the plants just too tasty. One of these days, I'll probably drop by my old neighborhood with a handshovel and pot and beg more off one of the residents. I suspect mine were species, as I never dead headed, and as they spread, stayed true. One reason I don't care for (?it is tetraploid) daylilies is because of the ugly finish -- this blob of messy used facial tissue look. I used to drive around with plants to share, a mini gardening mattock and some pots or bags. If I spotted a gardener working on anything that looked good <g> and that seemed abundant, I'd stop to talk a bit and ask if I might have a sample of whatever plant, and invite them to take any of the perennials I'd brought along or could get for them. I didn't do tons of this, but found most gardeners I met while bicycling or in my little car, to be busy, but very willing to share and exchange. Sometimes just by stopping my bike to compliment someone or comment, I was offered fresh green beans and another time all the dropped (interesting) apples I could fit into my bike's bag. Nice people and I also learned some things. I agree with those who suggest tossing the plant (or offering it to someone who might want it -- Freecycle maybe). I hope you find the pinks like Sis has or can get some of hers sent to you.