Easy Garden Rainbows - Blue

In this article on blue flowers, I have named 8 of the best, easiest blue-flowering plants for the garden. Here you will find perennials, shrubs and a vine.

People wanting to add blue flowers to their garden are usually doing it for a very good reason. Apparently, blue is the most popular "favourite" colour. Blue is one of the last colours to be lost in partial colour-blindness, and farmers, sailors, gardeners, and just about everyone else are pretty happy to see a clear blue sky. True blue is quite rare in flowers though. There are some here that match that description, but some are simply blues of other shades.

What happened to Green? For those of you who have been following the Easy Rainbow series, you may have noticed I skipped the colour green. Another Suite101.com gardening editor wrote a great article on green flowers for St. Patrick's Day this year. If you want to check out some green flowers, I suggest Growing of the Green: Green Flowering Plants by our very own Barb Dorsett, the Midwest Gardener.

Gentians There are many gentians to grow in the garden, but there is one that stands out as particularly unique and easy to grow. September Gentian (Gentiana septemfida) is a very valuable source of late-season colour, and of course, in classic gentian style, the flowers are electric blue. When I say late-season, I mean that they can effectlively cover the period when many other perennials have quit blooming, yet before the asters come into bloom. The variety 'Lagodechiana' is more commonly available than the straight species, and it has slightly larger flowers. Plant in sun to partial shade, in good soil. Likes well-drained soil in the winter -- no standing puddles please!

On the wet west coast, gentians do well in the rockery or on a slope. They grow to only 8 inches tall, so a spot near the front of a rockery or wall is great. They will trail slightly, but not enough to write home about.

Speedwell The Veronicas can be picky here on the coast where heavy rains and high humidity can cause mildew on leaves of everything from Aquilegias to Zinnias. In hot muggy areas, rust can infect Veronica as well. Veronica longifolia 'Sunny Border Blue' is no exception, but it does seem to be more resistant to mildew than the others. If you crave compact, healthy looking plants with spikes of sky-blue flowers, then maybe this one is for you. It grows to 24 inches tall (that's 60 cm for you Canadians), and makes an excellent border plant. Prefers well-drained soil, but will withstand some standing puddles in the winter. To lessen the chance of mildew infestation in humid areas, be sure to plant them in full sun, in an area with good air circulation.