Higgledy Garden
  • About Higgledy Garden
  • The Higgledy Garden Shop
  • Ben’s Blog
  • Growing Guides
  • Seed Sowing Guide
  •  
0
Your cart is empty. Go to Shop.

Scabiosa stellata ‘Ping Pong’.

scabiosa-ping-pong

 

It was Great Uncle Reggie Higgledy who as you may know was the inventor of both table tennis and of comfortable gentleman’s slacks, that first suggested the cut flower gardens of the Higgledy clan should include Scabiosa stellata ‘Ping Pong’. Reggie could often be seen snipping away in his cut flower patch supporting a dashing pair of teal trousers with elasticated waist and integrated cushioned seat. He cut quite a rug in home town of Hastings.

In my own cut flower garden I am rather fond of Scabiosa…I have limited space and so I limit myself to three varieties. I have ‘Back In Black’ for it’s deep and sumptuous purple…it is royalty on a stem…‘Crown’ is a more relaxed vibe with shades from white through pink and a smattering of darker blooms….this variety is the most ‘Country Style’ and I wouldn’t be without it. Lastly I have ‘Ping Pong’…not only because Uncle Reg  loved it so much but because the florists who buy flowers off me for weddings go quite delirious about having it….and it’s not hard to see why.

scabiosa

The flowers of ‘Ping Pong’ start off their life as a light blue…fairly unassuming to be honest….but then develop into the most incredible seed heads…these seed heads are made of maroon and green bracts…run of the mill they ain’t.

Tips For Growing Scabiosa ‘Ping Pong’

*For my own purposes I have found it best to start scabiosa seeds off inside. Though it is perfectly acceptable to sow them straight into the ground…if doing this leave it until mid April when the soil has warmed up a little….sowing outside before this may reduce the germination rate.

You can also sow them in Autumn for earlier flowering plants. See ‘What flowers to sow in Autumn’

*I sow in small pots, usually three inch square pots….which gives you 15 pots per seed tray.

*Gently cover the seeds by their own depth with good quality seed compost (I use sieved homemade compost where possible) and keep the compost damp but not saturated.

*Leave your pots on a windowsill or in a greenhouse…or in the back of the car as I did last year.

*Six weeks later it will be mid May and this is the last frost date for most of England…Scotland is later…the west of England may be a little earlier. Your scabiosa plants should be big enough to go out into the real world…get them used to the change of temperature though…pop them outside during the day for about a week and if a particularly cold couple of days is forecast, just hold off and leave them inside a little longer.

How to grow scabiosa

*For a cutting garden, I leave about a foot between plants and plant them in straight rows…this makes hoeing around them a WHOLE lot easier.

*Once established my old chum Walter Winkleforth said to let them dry out between waterings…which I do…and they seem to love it. (Bless their cottons.)

Down here in Cornwall my plants seem to make it through the winter….though I always sow more…as I’m a seed fiend.

Kind regards

Benjamin Higgledy.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
The Top Ten Tips For Starting Your Own Cut Flower Garden This Spring. When To Sow Your Flower Seeds. (Don’t Sow Too Early!)

Fresh posts!

  • Why Higgledy is limiting available stock to 75k packets per year.
  • Eight Months At Bluebell Cottage Nursery.
  • Sowing Sweet Peas In Autumn And Winter.
  • Why you should be sowing Hardy Annuals in late August/early September.
  • Autumn Sowing Of Hardy Annual Flowers.

Sign up for the newsletter!

Once every two months, I send subscribers a discount code or an offer for a heavily discounted bundle of seeds. You won't get inundated with emails... I'm far too lazy for that sort of caper.

Possibly old and musty

  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • August 2020
  • June 2020
  • September 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • July 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • December 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
© Higgledy Garden 2020
site by santa ana limited
Privacy Policy

Join Us

Once every two months, I send subscribers a discount code or an offer for a heavily discounted bundle of seeds. You won't get inundated with emails... I'm far too lazy for that sort of caper.

Join the chat on social media

Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter