The fantastically named Devil's-bit
Scabious brings beautiful purple tinges to the damp meadows, heaths and grasslands of autumn.
For example, the marsh fritillary butterfly will only feed its young on devil's bit
scabious, a tall, wire-stemmed herb with violet-blue, pincushion flowers, and only on those individual plants that are larger than the surrounding vegetation.
Scabious, achillea and verbena are good for starters.
Roedd Ruth Hughes, Penygroeslon yn holi am yr enwau ar tamaid y cythraul (Succisa pratensis; devil's bit
scabious).
Contrast the fabulous
Scabious 'Chile Black' with softer, creamier border perennials.
So do most thalictrum and the giant yellow
scabious, Cephalaria gigantia.
Five facts about Blast Beach | | The Durham Coast is well known for its spectacular wildflowers and some of the fields at Blast Beach are among the best places to enjoy them, with plants like bloody cranesbill, dyer's greenweed and devil's-bit
scabious creating a riot of colour in the summer.
For more information about Durham Place of Light, visit www.durham.gov.uk/PLACEOFLIGHT Five facts about Blast Beach | | The Durham Coast is well known for its spectacular wildflowers and some of the fields at Blast Beach are among the best places to enjoy them, with plants like bloody cranesbill, dyer's greenweed and devil's-bit
scabious creating a riot of colour in the summer.
IAnd last weekend, in my new role as unofficial floral 'birder', I found a tiny blue plant - apparently the miniature 'sheep's bit'
scabious - as well as the climber known as Old Man's Beard.
Andy Garcka, Greenford, North West London: Try
scabious (both knautia and scabiosa species), coreopsis, Anthemis tinctoria and cultivars of Geranium wallichianum.
Scabious plants have feathery blooms, usually in a pale lavender or cream.
The plants were kindly funded by Co-operative Cymru Wales, and one of their criteria for sponsorship was to use insect-friendly plants, so the garden includes lavender, penstemon, achillea and
scabious, among others.