Legousia Speculum-Veneris Venus’s Looking-Glass
VENUS’S LOOKING-GLASS
The name Venus’s-looking-glass is fully justified. The small violet-blue flowers are no more than V4 in wide but have an unearthly beauty and look up to the skies like miniature radio telescopes. They are carried on spreading, bushy plants about 8 in high. Venus’s looking-glass is a native plant in many parts of Europe, including Britain and The Netherlands, where it is now rare. It grows mainly on arable land in loose, moisture-retentive, and nutritive soil. All we need do is scatter its seed in ordinary garden soil from April onwards and enjoy the small flowers from June. They do not flower for very long, so it is advisable to sow repeatedly.
As a result of an error by one of the largest seed merchants, the plant is marketed on a large scale under the name of a different botanical genus, Downingia.