Scabious' clumps of dark evergreen leaves send up branched stems studded with rounded heads of purplish blue flowers towards the end of summer. If cephalaria is the elephant, then the sheep's bit scabious (Jasione laevis) is the mouse at 20cm high. Scabious' clumps of dark evergreen leaves send up branched stems studded with rounded heads of purplish blue flowers towards the end of summer. A taller variation on the inky theme is devil's bit scabious which is native to damp meadows and streamsides. 'Ace of Spades' is amongst the darkest of garden flowers, and looks lovely weaving its way between blond grasses and nodding cosmos.

Source: Stuff December 29, 2019 19:41 UTC