centaurea

noun

1. Any of the plants in the genus Centaurea.

   “Its border is of tri-colored and quadricolored geranium leaves, intermingled with leaves of the highly tinted coleus and the hoary centaurea.”

   “Two of the best-known annual centaureas are C. cyanus (cornflower or Bachelor’s button) and C. moschata (Sweet Sultan).”

   “The ancient Greeks believed that when Chiron was wounded in the foot by an arrow that Hercules had poisoned with the blood of the Hydra he cured himself by treating the wound with the sap of a centaurea. However, in actual fact, none of the centaureas, like the majority of the family Compositae in general, possess any great medicinal properties.”

   “Another type of centaurea, which has an interesting flower with sharp pointed tips, is Centaurea moschata. It is also fragrant and will need staking like the other centaureas but usually doesn’t bloom quite as prolifically.”