Scabiosa 'Pink Mist'

Scabiosa 'Pink Mist': Soft Pink Pincushions in Lean Soil

'Pink Mist' looks delicate, the way a teacup chihuahua looks delicate right before it takes over the household. Soft pink pincushions on wiry stems, and a dry spell barely registers. DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE LITTLE ONE.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Scabiosa columbaria 'Pink Mist'
• Common Name: Pincushion Flower
• Height: 30–45 cm (12–18 in)
• Spread: 30–45 cm (12–18 in)
• Flowers: Large, soft, light pink pincushion-shaped blooms on wiry stems
• Bloom Time: Early summer to late fall (June to October)
• Foliage: Grey-green and ferny, in a low mound
• Features: Very long bloom season, good cut flower

Where to Plant: Tuck it along the front of a sunny border, edge a path or fill gaps in a rock garden, where it's happy in lean soil. It's a natural for mixed containers and cutting gardens too, and several planted together really add up.

Companion Plants: Plant 'Pink Mist' in a sunny, well-drained bed with a thyme carpet, deep violet lavender and white milkweed. Thymus 'Elfin' creeps at the front at 2 to 8 cm with lavender-pink flowers in July and August. Lavandula 'Hidcote Superior' adds fragrant deep violet spikes at about 40 cm from June to September. Asclepias 'Ice Ballet' brings white milkweed at 90 to 120 cm from July to September. Schizachyrium 'Little Red Fox' grows to 60 to 75 cm and turns red and copper in fall.

Plant Care: Give it full sun and well-drained soil. Sandy or average soil is ideal, and it copes with acidic to alkaline conditions. It prefers to stay on the dry side, so heavy, wet clay is a bad match unless you improve the drainage first. Water through its first summer while roots settle in, then only in long dry spells. Snip off faded flowers to keep new ones coming all season. Tidy spent stems in late fall or early spring, leaving the basal leaves. Divide in spring if the clump gets tired after a few years.

History: Scabiosa columbaria, small scabious, is a European wildflower of dry, sunny grassland, and its genus name comes from the Latin scabies, an itch, after an old use for skin complaints. The common name pincushion flower comes from the domed flower centres, with stamens sticking out like pins.

Final Thoughts: Sunny bed, little water, endless blooms and butterflies on repeat. Cut a few and make it a centrepiece. SOFT FACE, STEEL SPINE.