• ABOUT
  • BIRDING 2018
  • Birding 2019
  • BLOG POSTS
  • Butterflies 2018
  • Resources

earthstar

~ a celebration of nature

earthstar

Tag Archives: Succisa pratensis

On the scabious

31 Friday Aug 2018

Posted by sconzani in flowers, insects, nature, wildflowers

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

#FloralFriday, bees, British insects, British wildflowers, bumblebees, Devil's-bit scabious, flies, hoverflies, insects on scabious, Lavernock Nature Reserve, Succisa pratensis

180831 devil's-bit scabious (1)

Devil’s-bit scabious (Succisa pratensis) has a beautiful flower that paints the wildflower meadows at Lavernock Nature Reserve in shades of purple lusciousness and provides some very welcome late summer nectar and pollen to a host of insects, particularly bees, flies and butterflies.

180831 devil's-bit scabious (4)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (5)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (2)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (6)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (3)

And that name? Well, the story goes that the devil was not pleased that the plant’s medicinal properties were healing the skin conditions of people suffering from bubonic plague and scabies so, in a fit of rage, he tried to kill off the plant by biting off the ends of the plant’s roots. Ever the party pooper!

180831 devil's-bit scabious (9)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (11)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (7)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (10)
180831 devil's-bit scabious (8)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Devil’s-bit scabious

15 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by sconzani in flowers, nature, wildflowers

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

British flora, British wildflowers, Devil's-bit scabious, scabious, Succisa pratensis

There are several species of scabious – and I love them all – but the scabious I’m seeing most in my local nature reserves is the Devil’s-bit (Succisa pratensis).

170915 devil's-bit scabious (7)

Apparently, the scabious name is due to the rough stalks of these plants and dates to times past when scabious was used to treat scabies because people believed in the ‘signature of all things’ – not Elizabeth Gilbert’s latest book but that of Jakob Böhme, who presented the idea, in 1622, that God had imprinted prescriptions for human ailments in the shapes and forms of medicinal plants – thus, rough stalk = rough skin. The ‘Devil’s-bit’ comes from the fact that this plant’s roots have a short, bitten off look.

170915 devil's-bit scabious (1)
170915 devil's-bit scabious (2)
170915 devil's-bit scabious (3)

Massed displays of Devil’s-bit scabious lend a purplish tinge to the landscape but it’s the flowers I love best. They begin as fairies’ pincushions and bloom into luscious globular gloriousness.

170915 devil's-bit scabious (4)
170915 devil's-bit scabious (5)
170915 devil's-bit scabious (6)

Like this:

Like Loading...

About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

View Full Profile →

Follow earthstar on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Recent blog posts

  • Fern Friday: Hart’s-tongue January 27, 2023
  • Feasting Chiffchaff January 26, 2023
  • A Water vole does lunch January 25, 2023
  • A cool cloud January 24, 2023
  • Snoozing January 23, 2023

From the archives

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

COPYRIGHT

Unless otherwise acknowledged, the text and photographs on this blog are my own and are subject to international copyright. Nothing may be downloaded or copied without my permission.

Fellow Earth Stars!

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • earthstar
    • Join 578 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • earthstar
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d bloggers like this: