Centaurea pestalozzae

Asteraceae

These are the cornflowers and knapweeds, with very characteristic composite heads of long-petalled outer, sterile, florets and a boss of shorter, fertile florets. This array is surrounded by neatly overlapping bracts, hairy at the upper edge. There are hundreds of species of Centaurea in Europe, so identification is often difficult.

Centaurea pestalozzae is a neat western Turkish plant, with rosettes of hairy, pinnate leaves and bright yellow flowers, quite large, almost stemless. In drier areas it will do well outside in the rock garden, otherwise grow it in an alpine house or cold greenhouse.
9 cm pot £3.50

		Centaurea cf. carniolica SDR5443 has large pink flowers on branched stems, as usual with most attractive multiply-divided petals. It should be a good plant for a rock garden or raised bed.
		Centaurea deflexa comes from summer-dry parts of Turkey. It has densely hairy, silver grey rosettes of leaves, and bright yellow flowers on stems that tend to lie horizontally. As it likes sun and good drainage, and its hairy foliage dislikes excessive wetness, it is best grown in an alpine house or cold greenhouse.
		Centaurea drabifolia subsp. austro-occidentalis has rather open tufts of narrow, slightly hairy leaves, and has short stems, each with a few lovely golden yellow flowers. It comes from Turkey, and should do well outside in the rock garden.
		Centaurea drabifolia var. cappadocica comes, as its name indicates, from central Turkey, so it likes hot, dry summers, although it will grow in a sunny place outside with good drainage. It makes tufts of slightly hairy, narrow leaves, just overtopped by the lovely light yellow flowers.
		Centaurea jacea is a 'cornflower' with typical scaly brown bracts at the base of numerous soft lavender petals, which are feathery. It's like a thistle but without the spikes! A wonderful addition to the wild-flower bed, and ideal for attracting flying insects.
		Centaurea macrocephala is a tall species, with rich yellow flower heads similar to thistles. A robust plant for a sunny border.