Japanese name: ヤマヤグルマギク（山矢車菊） Scientific name:Cyanus montanus
[Overview]
A perennial 30–70 cm tall, found in its native range in mountain pastures and subalpine forest zones.
The stems and leaves have white hairs.
The leaves are simple and alternate, oblong-lanceolate.
The leaf margins are entire.
The flower heads are borne singly or in corymbs at the stem tips and consist entirely of tubular flowers, but the outer ones become enlarged and are irregularly split at the tips.
The flower color is usually bluish purple, but varies and can be red, pink, white or blue.
The involucral bracts have a black border.
The fruit is an achene.
[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed or by division.
It prefers a sunny, well-drained site.
Take care not to let it become too wet; for potted plants, water thoroughly after the soil has dried, and for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
Too much fertilizer makes the plant leggy and prone to falling over, so no fertilizer is particularly needed if basal fertilizer is applied, but for potted plants, chemical fertilizer may be placed on the soil once a month.
If giving additional fertilizer, take care not to give too much nitrogen, and apply it sparingly.
There are no particular pests or diseases.
