Botanical name: Centaurea nigra ‍ ‍
Folk names: Hardheads

Type: Perennial

Wildlife: Nectar-rich flowers for butterflies, bumblebees and hoverflies. Seeds for birds.

Flowers: June to July

Decorative merit: Mauve-pink, small thistle-like flowers on branching stems that form a clump over time.

Where: Sunny wild patch, mini meadow or middle of border where other plants can prop up its stems. Drought-tolerant once established. Will tolerate some shade.

Folklore: Petals were picked one by one for love-divination. Flower of the centaurs: mythological, benevolent half-man, half-horse creatures of the afterlife.

Daisy family relative.

Donate seeds to Exeter Seed Bank