Easy Garden Rainbows - Blue
Carpathian Harebells and Bell Flowers The Carpathian Harebell (Campanula carpatica) is a dainty little perennial that bears open, upward-facing bells in white, blue and pink. 'Blue Clips' has larger, bluer flowers than any other.
Another easy Campanula is 'Birch's Hybrid'. This is another mounding perennial, with closed blooms drooping down or facing out horizontally. Both grow to 10 inches tall, have a mounding or hummocking habit, and will trail over walls slightly. The bloom the most in May, but flower intermittantly throughout the summer months. Likes full sun to shade, but of course flowers the best in sun. These make a nice perennial alternative to lobelia. From a distance they can look quite similar.
For a really nice picture of Carpathian Harebells in their native habitat in Slovakia, click here.
Balloon Flowers Platycodon grandiflorus is a surprisingly hardy perennial. It looks tender and tropical in bloom, particularly when there are open blooms and those about to pop open in a bubble-like burst. At the same time, it is as easy to grow as a campanula, and I have often wondered why more people don't.
They look fabulous as they come out of the ground in the spring. Their strong upward growth looks a bit like the spring shoots of asparagus in miniature.
By May, the stems have leafed out and stand about 1 foot tall. By July 1, they are 2 feet tall and in full bloom. They normally continue to flower until September or so, but warm falls have caused them to continue into November. Additionally, balloon flowers are long-lived and trouble-free. Plant in full sun or partial shade in just about any soil. They don't mind the occasional drought, but frequent watering will keep them blooming strongly.
The flowers of balloon flowers are hard to describe, so here's a great picture of one from The Bioinformatics Working Group's Vascular Plant Image Gallery.
Monkshood Aconitum carmichaelii arendsii is one of the best and easiest blue flowers for the shaded garden. They have much the same habit as a delphinium -- tall growing (to 4 feet, or 120 cm) lacy leaves, elegant spikes -- but no staking required! What a releif!
Monkshood likes cool, moist, well-drained soil, making it great for many urban settings on the north coast. They can live in shade, partial shade, or sun, but there is one important factor you should take into account -- all parts of this plant are TOXIC.
Here's a
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