Scabiosa L.

2 species naturalized Aust.; all states except Qld, NT

*Scabiosa atropurpurea L.

Annual, erect herb up to 50 cm high. Leaves lyrato-pinnatifid to coarsely dentate, elliptic to oblanceolate in outline, up to 7cm long and 2 cm wide. Flower heads hemispherical on naked scapes usually up to 20 cm long. Receptacle bracts linear-lanceolate, not pungent. Corolla dark purple to white. Blue Mts Occasionally naturalized along roadsides. Introd. from the Mediterranean. Pincushion