Scabiosa atropurpurea Pincushion Flower, Sweet Scabiosa1
Introduction
Pincushion flower forms a wonderful, aster-like flower atop a 12-inch-tall herbaceous perennial (Fig. 1). The deep pink flowers appear during the warm months.
General Information
Scientific name: Scabiosa atropurpurea
Pronunciation: skay-bee-OH-suh at-roe-per-POOR-ree-uh
Common name(s): pincushion flower, sweet scabiosa
Family: Dipsacaceae
Plant type: annual
USDA hardiness zones: all zones (Fig. 2)
Planting month for zone 7: Jun; Jul
Planting month for zone 8: May; Jun; Jul; Aug
Figure 1.
Pincushion flower
Planting month for zone 9: Apr; May; Jun; Jul; Aug; Sep
Planting month for zone 10 and 11: Feb; Mar; Apr; May; Jun; Jul; Aug; Sep; Oct; Nov; Dec
Origin: not native to North America
Figure 2.
Shaded area represents potential planting range.
Uses: border; mass planting
Availability: somewhat available, may have to go out of the region to find the plant
Description
Height: 1 to 3 feet
Spread: 1 to 2 feet
Plant habit: upright
Plant density: open
Growth rate: moderate
Texture: medium
Foliage
Leaf arrangement: most emerge from the soil, usually without a stem
Leaf type: simple
Leaf margin: parted
Leaf shape: spatulate
Leaf venation: pinnate
Leaf type and persistence: not applicable
Leaf blade length: 2 to 4 inches
Leaf color: green
Fall color: not applicable
Fall characteristic: not applicable
Flower
Flower color: pink
Flower characteristic: showy; summer flowering
Fruit
Fruit shape: no fruit
Fruit length: no fruit
Fruit cover: no fruit
Fruit color: not applicable
Fruit characteristic: inconspicuous and not showy
Trunk and Branches
Trunk/bark/branches: not applicable
Current year stem/twig color: not applicable
Current year stem/twig thickness: thick
Culture
Light requirement: plant grows in full sun
Soil tolerances: acidic; sand; loam; clay
Drought tolerance:
Soil salt tolerances: unknown
Plant spacing: 12 to 18 inches
Other
Roots: not applicable
Winter interest: not applicable
Outstanding plant: not particularly outstanding
Invasive potential: not known to be invasive
Pest resistance: long-term health usually not affected by pests
Use and Management
Pests and Diseases
There are no major problems.
Footnotes
This document is FPS537, one of a series of the Environmental Horticulture Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Original publication date October, 1999. Reviewed September, 2007. Visit the EDIS Web Site at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.
Edward F. Gilman, professor, Environmental Horticulture Department, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611.
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