I received some Scabiosa seedlings from a friend this year. Three were Fama Blue, which I've been dying to grow. It took until the middle of October, the same time we had our one hard freeze here, to get one of the buds on one of the three plants to open. DH and I kept the plant covered during the nights when it was to be below 37 degrees. The bud opened and it was lovely. Though not the blue I had hoped for, it was a gorgeous shade of purple that opened lighter and darkened the longer the flower lasted. I had seen some kind of small bee type of insect on it several times, and there was pollen on the flower petals and the center of the flower. Since then, several more flowers on the same stalk have opened and I've seen the same type of insect on them too.

The initial flower has finally closed up, while the flowers further down the stem have opened. After the cold snap in the middle of October, our weather has warmed up somewhat. It looks like the warmer temps are going to be over, starting at the end of the week and for at least 4 nights we are going into the 20's. Is there any chance that I can get some seeds from the initial flower that is done blooming, or is it too late to hope for them? Fama Blue Scabiosa is not an easy flower to find, and I'd love to save the seeds, if there are any.

Would you leave the stem on the plant for a while, in spite of the cold weather, or would you cut the whole stalk of flowers off and bring the whole thing inside to put in water until the stalk finishes blooming? Could I cut the first flower off and set it to dry and check for seeds when it does dry out? Or should I just forget this year and wait until next summer, when it should bloom on a regular schedule?

Opinions please,

Thanks,

Linda