If Ammi is the workhorse white umbel of a cutting garden, Orlaya is the designer alternative. Each flat head is made of dozens of tiny white florets ringed by dramatically elongated outer petals, which gives it a cleaner, more sculptural quality than the looser Ammi structure.
It is the umbel high-end wedding florists ask for by name, and growing it yourself lifts a cottage bouquet into something that looks deliberately designed. Native to the eastern Mediterranean, and abundant enough in Crete to have earned the name Minoan Lace.
Sow it where it is to grow if you can — the taproot is sensitive and resents moving. Give it lean soil rather than rich, and plant in groups of five or more so the slender stems hold each other up. The sap can irritate skin in sunlight, as with others in the carrot family, so wear gloves when cutting on a bright day.
