Growing Orlaya (Laceflower): A Complete Profile
By Growing Home Greens Team · August 10, 2026
Orlaya, also called laceflower, looks like a finer, more refined cousin of Queen Anne’s lace, its flat, lacy white flower heads a favorite for softening a bouquet without competing with bolder blooms.
Direct-seed is the easier route
Direct-seeding is recommended, covering the seed lightly rather than burying it. Transplanting also works, started 4 to 6 weeks before planting out. Germination takes 12 to 16 days at 60-65°F. Orlaya tolerates dry soil better than a lot of cut flowers, which makes it more forgiving in a spot that dries out between waterings. Space plants 9 to 12 inches apart; mature stems reach 24 to 30 inches and may need support.
Two harvest points
For fresh arrangements, cut once about 80 percent of a flower head has opened, checking that the petals are crisp white with no hint of pollen shedding yet. For dried arrangements, wait until seed pods have formed on the head.
Orlaya has no recorded companions or antagonists in our data. See the full companion guide for orlaya for how it’s tracked. Its height and need for support make it a good fit for a trellised row in the Garden Designer, similar to ammi and other lacy cut flowers.
Source: Orlaya (Laceflower): Key Growing Information, Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
Companion planting guide for Orlaya (Laceflower) · 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. Orlaya (Laceflower) tolerates either.
See exact start-indoors, direct-sow, and harvest dates for your zone →
How many Orlaya (Laceflower) plants fit per square foot?
Spacing: 2 per square foot (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 2-2.5 ft.
Varieties worth considering
- Straight-species orlaya (Orlaya grandiflora): Johnny's Selected Seeds sells this species plain; the flat, lacy white flower heads are the whole point, and there's no meaningful named-cultivar market beyond the species itself. (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 orlaya seeds
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Some links on this page also go to other retailers we may earn a commission from as an affiliate, at no extra cost to you. We only recommend products with a genuine consensus of positive, independent reviews. See the sources cited on each item.
See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing orlaya (laceflower)" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Orlaya (Laceflower): A finer, more refined-looking cousin of Queen Anne's lace, grown for its lacy, flat-topped white flowers in a cut-flower row.
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