Sweet Scabious 'Salmon Queen'

'Salmon Queen' is a truly exquisite annual scabious that brings a soft, warm glow to the summer border with its pincushion-like blooms in shades of pale salmon and coral pink. Each flower head is held on a tall, wiry stem, making it a perfect choice for cutting and use in informal floral arrangements. In UK gardens, it typically reaches a height of 90cm and broadens out into a multi-stemmed plant. It is highly attractive to pollinators, particularly butterflies and hoverflies, which frequent the nectar-rich florets. This plant thrives in a sunny position with alkaline to neutral soil that is well-drained. To maintain a continuous supply of flowers through the summer and into autumn, it is important to pick the flowers regularly or deadhead spent blooms. It is easy to grow from seed sown directly in late spring or started earlier in modules for an early summer display.

Sun: Full sun.

Soil: Well-drained, alkaline or neutral soil.

Hardiness: H3 — down to −5°C.

Flowering: Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct.