{"id":41628,"date":"2026-01-07T23:18:21","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T07:18:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/?post_type=product&#038;p=41628"},"modified":"2026-07-11T01:51:41","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T08:51:41","slug":"scabious-white-devils-bit-alba","status":"publish","type":"product","link":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/product\/scabious-white-devils-bit-alba\/","title":{"rendered":"Scabious, White Devils-bit &#8216;Alba&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Succisa pratensis | <\/em>White Devil&#8217;s-bit Scabious\u00a0 (&#8216;Alba&#8217;)<\/p>\n<p>White Devil&#8217;s-bit, also called Sheeps-bit, and Blue Buttons is a rare, naturally occurring white-flowered variety of the common lilac-blue wildflower (<em>Succisa pratensis)<\/em>, treasured in wildlife gardens for its late-season nectar for bees and butterflies, with a distinctively truncated root, symbolizing its legendary herbal power against skin ailments like scabies.<\/p>\n<p>The Devils-bit plant possesses an unusually short, vertical rhizome or rootstock that has long, stout roots. The short rootstock is the feature that gives rise to the plant&#8217;s English common name- &#8216;Devil&#8217;s-bit Scabious&#8217;. In soils where the water table is often near the surface, the rootstock is extremely short (usually only 1-3 cm long) and since it ends abruptly, it looks as if it has been &#8216;bitten&#8217; off. Since ancient times, the plant rootstock has had a high reputation as an &#8216;All heal&#8217; herb and the Devil was therefore held responsible for its truncation \u2013 hence its common name.<\/p>\n<p>Dark green hairy leaves form a basal rosette from which long slender flowering stems elongate in midsummer, holding delightful, bobbing pincushion-type white flower heads that make a striking display when they finally bloom in August. <span class=\"T286Pc\" data-sfc-cp=\"\" data-processed=\"true\">Contrasts beautifully with other meadow flowers.<\/span><span class=\"uJ19be notranslate\" data-wiz-uids=\"wtndFd_2b,wtndFd_2c\" data-processed=\"true\"><span class=\"vKEkVd\" data-animation-atomic=\"\" data-wiz-attrbind=\"class=wtndFd_2a\/TKHnVd\" data-processed=\"true\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"T286Pc\" data-sfc-cp=\"\" data-processed=\"true\">Prefers full sun to partial shade in well-drained to damp soil. They are m<\/span>ost commonly found growing in damp meadows, heaths, and sunny spots, growing alongside other wildflowers. It&#8217;s a\u00a0crucial late-season nectar source for butterflies, months, and bees.<\/p>\n<p>Sow seeds outdoors in fall or spring in moist soil, covering lightly, or try sowing indoors with cold stratification for a couple weeks or more for earlier and better germination.<\/p>\n<p>Type: Perennial<\/p>\n<p>Sun exposure: Full sun to part shade<\/p>\n<p>Mature height: 2.5-3 ft<\/p>\n<p>Mature width: 18-24 inches<\/p>\n<p>Hardiness zones: 5-9<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>20 seeds<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":41629,"template":"","meta":[],"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[2602,4599,4593,2852,4669,2600,4642],"product_tag":[],"class_list":["post-41628","product","type-product","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","product_cat-all-seeds","product_cat-flowers","product_cat-garden-shop","product_cat-herb","product_cat-new-returning","product_cat-perennial-flower-seeds","product_cat-seeds","first","instock","taxable","shipping-taxable","purchasable","product-type-simple","add-to-wishlist-before_image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/41628","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41629"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41628"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_brand?post=41628"},{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=41628"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/athousandflowers.us\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=41628"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}