Plant Patent #15,815. Simply the best Ajuga for midnight-dark foliage, rich blue blooms, and great adaptability to varying soils and moisture levels, Black Scallop is a stunning groundcover for the garden floor or container. Its foliage is oversized, its habit very low and mat-forming, and its maintenance low.
Black Scallop offers large, scallop-shaped leaves of such a deep purple that they gleam black even in the sun. They cover ground quickly, forming a weed-choking mat that replaces artificial mulches and adds dramatic color to the sunny to partly shaded garden. If planted about a foot apart, Black Scallop plants fill in in no time; however, they also spread up to about 3 feet wide, so may be spaced farther apart for more gradual coverage.
The foliage -- evergreen in mild and warm climates -- is only one of Black Scallop's merits. From late spring into early summer, this plant cloaks itself in rich, deep blue blooms crowded along short spikes. Very showy, the blossoms offset the dark foliage nicely.
Black Scallop achieves its darkest leaf color in full sun, making it a superb choice for mixed container plantings, where it will trail over the sides of a planter. And unlike older varieties of Ajuga, it is quite tolerant of variances in soil fertility and moisture levels. Tougher and more garden-worthy in addition to being most attractive, Black Scallop is the Ajuga your garden and containers deserve. Zones 4-11
