Ajuga 'Black Scallop'

The ruffled, glossy foliage forms a dense mat in rich tones of purple, mahogany, brown and black. This dark beauty looks wonderful with contrasting grey or green foliage. It makes a great edging plant, creeper or potted for a pop of colour.

Spring to summer little rosettes of lilac blue flower stems emerge above the leaves, they even have a soft perfume.

This easy care, evergreen ground cover acts as a great weed suppressor. As a rhizomatous, evergreen perennial it will spread at a reasonable pace through underground stolons. Frost isn’t an issue for this soldier, handling temperatures to -35C! And, while many Ajuga can be affected by mildew, this one has excellent resistance.

It is commonly known as Carpet Bugle because the leaves form a carpet and the flowers look like trumpets/bugles.

Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’ copes well with sun or shade and maintains flowering in both – but you will get the best foliage colour in shade to bright, filtered light. You will need to shelter these plants from the hot afternoon sun, or be prepared to water. They don’t like to dry out too much.

Plant Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’ in moderately fertile to humus rich, well drained soil. Water in well (this takes around four to six weeks of regular watering – sometimes daily in warm weather) and it will become pretty dry tolerant once established. In pots use a good quality potting mix and add a little fertiliser annually in spring.