Sheep's Scabious

Sheeps Scabious (Jasione) - Dwarf perennials and annuals of the Bell-flower family. J. humilis is a creeping tufted plant, about 6 inches high, bearing small heads of pretty blue flowers in July and August. Though a native of the high Pyrenees, it often succumbs to the damp and frosts of our climate, and it therefore requires a dry well-drained part of the rock garden, and should have a little protection in winter during severe cold and wet. J. perennis is taller, often above 1 foot high, with dense heads of bright blue flowers, from June to August; it is a rock garden plant, stronger than the preceding, thriving in good light loam, and a native of the mountains of C. and S. Europe. These perennial kinds may be propagated best from seed, as they do not divide well. J. montana is a neat, hardy annual with small, pretty bright blue flower-heads in summer. Seed in autumn or spring. A native plant.