Scabiosa is one of my favorite flowers, but I just can't seem to grow it in North Carolina. I've grown it in other states, no problem. Is anyone growing any here now? Under what conditions? Mine just sit there and don't do a thing--they don't always die, but they don't bloom or grow either. They are in full sun in a raised perennial bed, neutral PH, growing in topsoil, not clay. Help!
Growing Scabiosa
A little shade will help them, if possible, for late afternoon. I have many that are in pots and they tend to just "barely survive"...once in the ground they do much better.
Feeding them a balanced fertilize may also encourage more lush growth as well as more flowers. A small sprinkling of Epsom's Salts will also help them to flower.
Any idea what kind of "topsoil" you have them in? Bagged? Store-bought/bags?
Shoe.
Thanks Horseshoe, for that info. The soil they are in is "new", if such a thing is possible. That is, I have the oh so common red clay here, so when I created the bed this year, I rototilled the clay and purchased a load of topsoil which I worked in to raise the bed. I have only tested the Ph so far, and that is neutral. The soil is light, and prone to dryness--I am working on amending it, but since this is the first year, it does dry out fairly quickly. They are mulched with wood chips. I water some, but not alot, as most of the plants growing alongside it are fairly drought tolerant. Other plants which are thriving there include perennial and annual salvia, gerber daisies, coneflowers, marigolds, petunias, centaura, geum, lantana, etc. I just looked at them, and here's what they've done in 5 months--absolutely nothing! They are the same size, or slightly smaller than when I planted them, no new growth, no flowers, pretty much dormant. They get at least 6 hours of sun, if not more. You think its the heat? The soil seems to keep alot of other plants happy....
Well, hopefully the "top soil" was more than just sand and bark mix (and hope the bark was well broken down/aged, if any).
Yes, the heat will slow things down but in five months you should've seen something more than them remaining the same size. Did you feed them anything when you planted them?
Sounds like you really planted a great assortment of plants...those are gonna really look great once they kick in good!
Shoe.
(Who also has the wonderful orange clay!)
The soil is not the best I've ever seen, but its way above the sand/bark mix you describe, I think. From a reputable source, but not their most expensive blend. Part of this bed gets alot more shade than another part--I think I'm just going to transplant them down to the shadier part this fall, and work some compost in, and see what they do next year. It almost seems like they just never got over being planted. At least now I know that you can grow them successfully here in NC.. They just don't like my accomodations, apparently! I'm going to have a full soil analysis done before fall--maybe that will shed some light. Thanks for the advice, and enjoy your orange clay--I know I do!
"enjoy your orange clay"
Hah...yep, I have plenty. Efland is in Orange County! (Wonder where the got the name, eh?)
Why not feed your plants some fish emulsion and see if that kicks them in...they may just be starving. Or if you prefer, Osmocote will wake them up as well.
I love getting over to the Raleigh Farmers' Mkt at least once a year...maybe we can get together sometime. (Soon mountain apples and the like will be coming in! Yummy!)
Shoe.
Ok, got the stinking (literally!) fish emulsion right here. Its worth a shot....I'm a farmers market addict...! In fact, thats where the Scabiosa came from, now that I think about it. Will let you know the outcome as soon as they take a turn for the better..or worse, as the case may be.
I hear we're having a cold snap the end of this weekend/first of the week, yotedog. (Only supposed to be in the low-to-mid 80's!) Hopefully that will give your plants as much a reprieve from the heat as it will us.
Enjoy that fish emulsion.
Hi, Yote--in the spring, we received an order of Fringed Shasta daisies from an online nursery. In the shipment was a plant I didn't recognize and hadn't ordered. We planted it. I was so curious as to what it would be. The foliage was ugly, I thought....but the anticipation...! When it finally bloomed, it was a Scabiosa---a blueish lavender one. Gorgeous! It was wonderful watching the process of the bud in degrees turning into a flower. It has finished blooming and is triving in a raised bed (on top of SC red clay) which is amended with mushroom compost, peat moss, etc. . It is in full sun and seems to like it's place.
I was wondering...do Scabiosa multiply? Is it a perennial? We'll be moving it next sping since it is one lonely lavender surrounded by a bed of white daisies.
BTW--I wish I had ordered the regular Shasta Daisies , not crazy about the fringed ones.
Hmm...They do multiply somewhat, but fairly slowly. The times I have been successful growing them, I always moved before they needed to be divided. Yes, they are perennial, but some list them as "tender" and some say they are "short lived." I have grown them as far north as Virginia and had them come back. I think in our zone, if well mulched and its not an unusually harsh winter, there's a good chance of them surviving, though nurseries often list them as hardy only from zone 8 and south. They are not a rapid grower like, say, coneflowers or salvia, in my experience. Sounds like yours has the exact same conditions as mine...but is thriving. I noticed today that I only have one left now showing signs of life. (Sorry, Horseshoe, the fish emulsion did not do the trick...). I'm still hoping maybe they just got off to a bad start and will be back next year. They are a truly lovely plant. My favorite combination is to put them with bright red 'Strawberry Fields' Gomphrena (an annual). They just really complement each other... May you have better luck than me, and you can try those together next year. Yes, I, too, prefer the nonfringed daisy. Not sure why--maybe you can trade those to someone for the regular ones? Good Luck!
I wintersowed some Scabiosa this past year, and mine are not flourishing, but they're flowering and staying alive. I'm south of you, Yote, here in 8a. My Scabiosa are having to cope with the driveway next to them, but they do receive some light afternoon shade from a Chinese Elm. I'm letting my Scabiosa go to seed with the hope of more vigorous plants next Summer.
I love your idea of the 'Strawberry Fields' Gomphrena with the Scabiosa, Yote!