Scabios and scabious flowers are easy to cultivate and, if they thrive in one location, they bloom persistently from early summer until well into autumn. The perennials are often confused, although they can be clearly distinguished based on their unique features.
What are the differences between scabious flowers and scabious flowers?
The main difference between Scabious (Knautia) and Scabious is in the flowers: Scabious has four petals per marginal flower, many rows of bracts and light hairs at the base of the flower, while Scabious has five petals, chaff leaves and dark bristles in the center of the flower.
How are scabious and scabiosis similar?
Growth habit and flowersof scabious and scabiose arealmost identical:
- Both plants have a round stem that has no spines.
- The leaves are opposite and undivided to pinnate.
- The flower heads look like little umbrellas.
How can you distinguish between perennials based on their flowers?
The elongated, pointy flowers of theScabiosesalways havefive petals,those of theKnautiasonlyfour. So from a human perspective, they are missing something. This gave the scabious flowers their catchy name.
There are chaff leaves at the bottom of the flower head of the scabiosa (Scabiosa). The outer flowers are irregularly shaped and enlarged. There are also characteristically dark bristles in the center of the flower.
The fourfold flowers of the scabious (Knautia) usually have many rows of sheath leaves. There are light hairs at the bottom of the flower.
Do the fruits of scabious and scabiose differ?
Distinction based on the fruits isdifficult:
- Small fruits form from the flowers of the scabious. If you do not cut the plants back, they will self-seed.
- Scabioses have spherical fruit heads that look extremely attractive and are very popular with birds. If the plant feels comfortable in its location, it will also willingly grow itself.
Can I distinguish Knautias and Scabioses by their growth?
That'shardly possible,because both plants grow between 60 and 100 centimeters tall. They grow loosely upright, form stiff stems and resemble a small bush in their growth habit.
Tip
Specialized in scabious: The Knautia sand bee
You can recognize this extremely attractive, large wild bee by its partially red abdomen. Since it specializes in a single plant family, its existence is threatened and it is now listed on the Red List. Since Knautias also like to accept them in residential areas, you can ensure that their occurrence remains secure by sowing the pretty perennials in your own garden.
