Scabiosa atropurpurea Black Knight

Scabiosa atropurpurea 'Black Knight' is dramatic. Bold, dark plum pincushion-like flowers, some with sharply contrasting white stigmas, appear from summer to autumn. Bees and butterflies are drawn to them, so are humans! They’ve got almost everything: colour, scent, a long flowering season, cutting and, if so inclined, a dye plant too! 🌸 Flowering: June to October 📏 Height: to 90cm 🌿 Short-lived perennial, grow as an annual Sow: two approaches to choose from. Under cover early or late in the year, in trays, lightly cover the seeds, keep at 18-25C. Pot up when large enough and grow on until frost is past and you can plant them out. Or direct sow, in April or May, thinning seedlings 15-30cm apart. Grow: they like well-drained soil in a sunny spot. Regular deadheading or cutting will prolong flowering. Cutting back faded flower stems in autumn helps maintain plant health. A light mulch can protect the roots over winter. However, for reliable flowers it’s best grown as an annual. Enjoy: I’ve done some dyeing, you need a lot of flowers, and that is something that Black Knight does very well. But for pure pleasure seeing these amongst the other flowers is drama enough for me. 🏡 In your garden • Urban and courtyard gardens • Coastal gardens • Cottage and informal gardens • Patio and container plants • Meadow and naturalistic planting • Pollinator planting • Flower borders and beds • Cutting gardens ✂️ Cut flower • Fresh vase life of up to 10 days • Cut when buds are just beginning to open and pop into lukewarm water • Strip the lower leaves and cut the stem at a diagonal before putting in a vase • Change the vase water and trim the stems every couple of days • Fabulous paired with contrasting bright or lime-green foliage and flowers 🐝 Pollinator friendly • RHS Plants for Pollinators recommended • Honeybees, bumblebees, solitary bees and hoverflies frequently visit • They attract a range of butterflies, so you could see the garden favourites (Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Painted Lady, Peacock, Meadow Brown and Common Blue) stopping by 🎨 Natural dye plant • These can yield a wide range of shades ranging from deep greens and teals to blues, purples, and pinks. It all depends on the mordants and pH modifiers used • Dried flower heads are more concentrated. Follow a low-and-slow route, simmering (not boiling) for an hour before leaving the flowers to steep overnight before straining. • Start with tannin then alum mordants • Add the wet fabric to the dye bath and bring it back to a gentle simmer for an hour, then leave it in the pot to cool completely before hanging in the shade to dry • Even then the colours are considered fugitive. The tones shift and fade over time when exposed to sunlight and frequent washing. A small amount of iron water can improve the lightfastness but will shift the colour. • For pinks and maroons add a splash of white vinegar to the dye bath, for the greens add a little sodium bicarbonate. Remember that these colours will shift again if you then use iron water. 📜 Traditional uses • The name Scabiosa comes from the Latin scabies, meaning “itch”, reflecting the plant's long-standing traditional use for treating itchy skin conditions. • This is a historical use only, not a recommendation for medicinal use.