Talkback: Dianthus: In the pink - Talkback

10/09/2008 at 09:13

You are correct. Pinking shears were invented in the 14th century (pinken is a German word meaning to peck). The colour pink comes from the flower rather than the other way round.

Gardeners' World Web User

12/09/2008 at 14:29

I have a sink on the front patio by my bench. It is filled with a small dianthus that is white with a maroon ring near the middle. I do not know its name but the smell on a late Spring evening is beautiful.

Gardeners' World Web User

23/09/2008 at 14:29

At the weekend I got a lovely healthy large pot full of alpine pinks for 75p I'm going to plant them in some pebbles with some small grasses and small lavanders I'm going to look round for more alpine ones they are great value for money and really pretty.

Gardeners' World Web User

25/06/2009 at 19:55

Is it as easy as it sounds to take cuttings from dianthus? I love them (even if they're grandmotherly!) and would like to propagate some of the beautiful ones in the garden this year.

Gardeners' World Web User

19/10/2009 at 20:56

There are boxes of White miniature dianthus going cheap in our local DIY store - in surprisingly good condition! Would it be worth my while planting them now in some winter baskets or containers? If not - what's the best way to ensure they survive until they can be used for bedding out in the spring?

Gardeners' World Web User

31/03/2011 at 17:45

Lovely to hear about your pinks but wonder if you could help my dilemma. Do you know an appropriate mortar mix to cover an outdoor sink to make an alpine bed?

Gardeners' World Web User

04/04/2011 at 07:54

ValJ; Try this http://www.thegardenersalmanac.co.uk/Faq's/Hypatufa.htm

Gardeners' World Web User

28/11/2011 at 18:37

I heard somewhere - quite possibly on Gardeners World! - that pinks are not named for the colour, but for the frilly appearance of their petals, which look as if they've been cut out by pinking shears.

fiona_uk

15/03/2012 at 15:47

james well done on your pink thing my Mrs Sinkins is a delight i love the clove scent ...and i have pinks all over the garden ...Granny indeed !!!

cloud8

15/03/2012 at 19:42

before we started to use 'pink' as a colour as well as a 'pinked' shape we used to call pink coloured things 'rose' like the french word for 'pink'. Not sure what the anglo saxons called it though. Same with 'blue' for purple which we gardeners still use today as in "lavender's blue dilly dilly' which it clearly isn't, and anglo saxons would also have said 'violet' after the name of the flower not having a word for it. All this makes me think it must have been difficult describing colours if you were an anglo saxon.

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