Centaurea

Another great source of blue flowers, mountain bluet and perennial bachelor's button have the easy, casual growth habit of the wildflowers they are. This plant group also includes ornamental knapweeds, which have beautiful yellow blooms.

All three types are prolific nectar producers that attract butterflies. They self-seed readily, giving you lots more plants through the years. After blooming, like a lot of wildflowers, the plants get somewhat weedy looking and benefit from a cutting back by a third to a half to keep them tidy. If they like their growing conditions, they will spread into larger clumps that need dividing every couple of years.

Light:

Sun,Part Sun

Zones:

3-8

Plant Type:

Perennial

Plant Height:

1-5 feet tall

Plant Width:

1-3 feet wide

Landscape Uses:

Containers,Beds & Borders

Special Features:

Flowers,Cut Flowers,Dried Flowers,Attracts Butterflies,Drought Tolerant,Easy to Grow

Top Varieties

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'Amethyst in Snow' mountain bluet

Centaurea montana 'Amethyst in Snow' combines the best of the white and blue forms of the species. A central purple head is set off by pure-white ray flowers.
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Giant knapweed

Centaurea macrocephala, also known as Armenian basket flower, is indeed a large plant, growing 4-5 feet tall with bright yellow, thistlelike flowers in midsummer. It is hardy in Zones 3-8.
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Mountain bluet

Centaurea montana is a North American native flower with gray-green foliage and cornflower blue blooms in spring to early summer. It reblooms in midsummer if cut back after bloom.
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Perennial bachelor's button

Centaurea pulcherrima forms a low mound of deeply toothed gray-green leaves, which in early summer send up shaggy pink cornflower blooms. It tolerates hot, dry conditions and is hardy in Zones 4-9.
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Singleflower knapweed

Centaurea uniflora, as its common name suggests, bears solitary purplish-pink flowers on a mound of prickly green leaves 15-20 inches tall. It is hardy in Zones 4-8.
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White mountain bluet

Centaurea montana 'Alba' is similar to the species, but with white flowers instead of blue ones.
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Garden Plans

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Easy Slope Garden Plan
Sunny Yellow Garden Plan
Shared Property Line Bed
Large Summer Sunny Border
Beautiful Blues Garden Plan

Plant It With

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Poppy

Orange Oriental poppies make a glorious combination with mountain bluet. The complementary colors paint a vivid picture.

Russian sage

As mountain bluet blooms begin to fade, Russian sage will take over to carry the sunny, dry border through the rest of the year.

Butterfly weed

Butterfly weed makes a stunning color contrast to mountain bluet. It also teams well with giant knapweed to create a hot color combination.

Propagation

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Seed
Division