Growing Cynoglossum (Chinese Forget-Me-Not): A Complete Profile
By Growing Home Greens Team · August 10, 2026
Cynoglossum, commonly called Chinese forget-me-not, is a true-blue cut flower similar in color to a garden forget-me-not but larger-flowered and considerably easier to grow from seed.
Needs darkness, not light, to germinate
This is one of the few flowers here that runs opposite the usual rule: cover the seed rather than leaving it exposed, since cynoglossum needs darkness to germinate. Transplant, sowing 3 to 4 weeks before your last frost, or direct-seed as soon as the soil can be worked. Germination is fast, just 5 to 8 days at 65-70°F. Space plants 9 to 12 inches apart; mature plants reach 18 to 24 inches tall.
Harvest and other uses
Cut for a vase once about half the florets on a stem have opened. Beyond cutting, cynoglossum works as a beneficial-insect planting, drawing pollinators to a nearby vegetable bed that needs the visits.
Cynoglossum has no recorded companions or antagonists in our data. See the full companion guide for cynoglossum for how it’s tracked. At 4 plants per square foot, it’s a good pollinator-support cut flower for the Garden Designer, planted near crops that benefit from extra pollinator traffic.
Source: Cynoglossum (Chinese Forget-Me-Not): Key Growing Information, Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
Companion planting guide for Cynoglossum (Chinese Forget-Me-Not) · Find your planting dates
Typically viable in USDA zones 2-11. Not sure your zone? Look it up by ZIP code.
Method: Either: Start indoors for an earlier harvest, or direct-sow outside for less fuss. Cynoglossum (Chinese Forget-Me-Not) tolerates either.
See exact start-indoors, direct-sow, and harvest dates for your zone →
How many Cynoglossum (Chinese Forget-Me-Not) plants fit per square foot?
Spacing: 4 per square foot (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 1.5-2 ft.
Varieties worth considering
- 'Firmament' cynoglossum: Johnny's Selected Seeds describes this as the best blue forget-me-not for cut flowers, their standard offering of the species. (source)
Cited from the source shown next to each variety. We haven't grown these ourselves yet, so treat this as a research-backed starting point, not a personal endorsement.
Where to buy cynoglossum seeds
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See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing cynoglossum (chinese forget-me-not)" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Cynoglossum (Chinese Forget-Me-Not): A true-blue cut flower similar in color to a garden forget-me-not but larger and easier to grow from seed, also useful for drawing pollinators.
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