Knapweed (Black): From the Plant and Flower Alphabet
GRANITE BAY DESIGN PLANT & FLOWER ALPHABET
Knapweeds are robust weedy plants. Their leaves, spiny in some species, are usually deeply divided into elongated lobes at least in the plants’ lower part, becoming entire towards the top. The “flowers” (actually pseudanthium inflorescences) are diverse in colour, ranging from intense blues, reds and yellows to any mixture of these and lighter shades towards white.
Common names for this genus are centaury, centory, starthistles, knapweeds, centaureas and the more ambiguous “bluets”; a vernacular name used for these plants in parts of England is “loggerheads” (common knapweed). The Plectocephalus group – possibly a distinct genus – is known as basketflowers. “Cornflower” is used for a few species, but that term more often specifically means either C. cyanus (the annual cornflower) or Centaurea montana (the perennial cornflower).
Engravings from “Handbook of Plant and Floral Ornament from Early Herbals” by Richard G. Hatton (Originally published in 1909).
Plant descriptions primarily from Wikipedia.
