Columbine, Blue – Aquilegia caerulea

Description

Blue Columbine

A highly-prized wildflower, native to the Rocky Mountains and Colorado’s State Flower.  These beautiful, graceful perennials are easy to grow in partial sun with daily watering and are a favorite of hummingbirds and hawk moths.  The flowers of blue columbine are light to dark blue with white centers of spurred petals containing fragrant nectar.  The long, carrot-like taproot makes them very drought tolerant.  Blue Columbine seed will germinate more quickly if chilled in the refrigerator in a plastic bag with some moist peat moss or paper towel for one week prior to planting.  Keep these plants away from other types of columbines since they will hybridize and the resulting seed will grow with mixed colors.  Columbines and hummingbirds have a symbiotic relationship. – the hummingbird’s slender bill and long tongue enable the bird to reach the flower’s nectar from the base of the spur; in exchange, they act as the Columbine’s top pollinator.

Color:  Blue/White
Height:  24-36″
Type:  Perennial
Climate: Full sun to partial shade – Average to moist soils
Seeds/lb.:  425,000
Rate:  1 oz./60 sq.ft.
Bloom time:   late May-July
Pkt weight:  200 mg (approx. 150 seeds)
Zone:  4-8
Pollinators:  Hummingbirds, Hawkmoths