SCABIOSA CAUCASIA

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 132, 5 June 1937, Page 13

SCABIOSA CAUCASIA

If there is a plant in the garden that could truly be called a cut-and-come-again plant, it is surely the perennial scabious. It is always an advantage if they can be given a bed to tnemselves, where they may be daily stripped of their blooms without any disfigurement of the borders. There was once a popular belief that these plants were not hardy, but ! a plant that inhabits the windswept slopes of the Caucasus cannot be tender in our climate. But it is not very difficult to see how this legend arose, for the Caucasian scabious is very intolerant of rain-soaked ground, particularly during the winter. Like the pyrethrums, it cannot be planted with safety in damp, low-lying positions, or clammy, clay soils, unless special precautions are taken. Whatever spot is chosen, it should be open, sunny and, above all, well removed from the drip of trees, which is fatal. It does not matter in the least if the soil is lacking in lime, as this can be added readily enough, both as a dressing when the soil is first prepared and by frequent applications round the plants. Incidentally, these dressings of lime serve a very useful purpose if applied at intervals during the winter and early spring, for slugs and snails are inveterate enemies of scabious, but are easily kept at bay with lime. It should, however, be thoroughly air-slaked before use, after which preparation it does not matter in the least if some is scattered over the plants, for it will do no injury to the foliage. Accasionally, if lime has been used freely for several weeks, and the weather has been alternately wet* and dry, a solid cake is formed over the soil surrounding the plants. This should be taken up as soon as possible for if left it tends to suffocate young growth. Do not be afraid of young plants, providing they have healthylooking leaves and young, vigorous roots; they are frequently more satisfactory than older clumps, with hard or hollow centres, for these have lost their early vigour and form a secure harbourage for slugs. For this reason it is advisable to renew' the plants every third or fourth year by striking cuttings in a cold frame in spring, as soon as the young growths are available.