Succisa pratensis

'Devil's Bit Scabious'

[Ex. Oxfordshire, England]

Dipsacaceae: upright perennial to 75cm with hairy or hairless stems. Found growing on damp grassland, in woodland and marshes. The striking flowers are a pinkish lilac to violet-blue with projecting anthers, in dense, domed terminal heads. The leaves are spoon-shaped at the base of the plant, but narrow on the steam. Widespread and common throughout. Native to Europe, including Britain, south and east from Norway to North Africa, Siberia and the Caucasus.

USES:

The young shoots can be eaten raw; the tender young shoots are sometimes added to spring salads.

The herb is anthelmintic, demulcent, depurative, slightly diaphoretic, diuretic, emmenagogue, mildly expectorant, febrifuge and stomachic. It makes a useful tea for the treatment of coughs, fevers and internal inflammations and is also a popular application externally to eczema and other cutaneous eruptions. A tincture of the plant is a gentle but reliable treatment for bruises, aiding quick re-absorption of the blood pigment. The whole herb is collected in early autumn and dried for later use. Good results have been achieved by using a distilled water from the plant as an eye lotion to treat conjunctivitis.

The Devil's-bit Scabious provides nectar for hoverflies, bees and butterflies, and is famously the larval food plant of the rare marsh fritillary.

GROWING INFORMATION:

Seeds are best sown in the autumn. The sowing must be kept warm (about +18 to +22°C) [about 64 to 72°F] and moist for the first 2–4 weeks. After this period the sowing must be kept at a cold temperature (between –4 and +4°C) [between 25 and 39°F] for another 4–6 weeks. Succeeds in ordinary garden soil, preferring damp conditions, in sun or semi-shade. Hardy to about -20°C. 

Excellent bee and butterfly plant and a food plant for the caterpillars of many butterfly species.

HARVESTED:

APPROX. 200+ SEEDS