Nigella (aka love-in-a-mist, or devil in the bush) has a dual nature: quite easy to grow, but so hard to get started! Plugs provide a launchpad for this versatile crop, which can be cut while in flower or after it sets those gorgeous seed pods.
Albion Black Pod has a lovely white flower (seen above, grown by Amanda Keene of Flowers on Phoenix) that turns into deep mahogany pods if left alone. Bailey harvests the entire plant for ease of harvesting. One to three plants can be bundled together to make one growers bunch. This variety dries very well–see Kim Michel of Blue Cloud Farm's photo of mature Nigella Albion Black seedpods, below.
Delft Blue has a bit of a cult following and is at its prettiest while in flower. Grey and white flowers are heavily streaked with dark blue. They can also be allowed to form long lasting pods. Kim Michel of Blue Cloud Farm grew and photographed the Nigella Delft Blue flowers seen in the photo below.
