Native to Europe, Aquilegia Vulgaris, known as Columbine has escaped gardens and naturalized in parts of North America. Bushy and clump-forming, this attractive perennial has delicate blossoms in shades of blue, violet, pink, or white with spreading sepals and short-hooked spurs. They rise with natural grace in a mound of thin, leafy stems in late spring to early summer. Leaves are gray-green, rounded, and divided into lobed leaflets. A wide array of cultivars is available in commerce, featuring flowers that are single or double, short-spurred or spurless, in a variety of colors ranging from blue to violet to white to pink to red. They all are elegant additions to the shade garden! If your plant is affected, destroy all fallen leaves and plant debris to reduce the chance of spores affecting new growth in spring. Grows in a bushy, upright clump up to 18-36 in. high (45-90 cm) and spreads 16-20 in. (40-50 cm). This perennial is generally short-livedbut will self-seedprolifically to form large colonies in satisfactory growing conditions. You won’t long forget your first encounter with pink petticoat vine in bloom. Even when not in bloom, the lush foliage makes this a lovely plant but when the flowers appear, watch out! Dense clusters of narrow, bright pink blooms resemble swaying skirts of yesteryear. DAYS TO GERMINATION: 21-28 days at 70-75°F (21-24°C). Refrigerate seed for 5 days prior to planting. Light aids germination. Outdoors, soil temperature must be above 65°F.

The larval stages of the sawfly can defoliate aquilegia plants, leaving only the leaf veins and stalks.Once the plant is mature, pink petticoat plant care is minimal with the exception of pruning to prevent overtaking of the garden space, occasional watering in summer, and feeding in early spring. This disease needs moist conditions so keep your aquilegia foliage as dry as possible. Avoid planting close to other plants that hold moisture. Water at the base of the plant rather than on the leaves and stems. Water early in the day to allow water to evaporate. Keep the area weed free to allow for air circulation. This double flower resembles a frilly petticoat. It is cerise at the base and white at the petal tips. A gorgeous addition to an old-fashioned cottage garden, this is a shorter variety growing to a maximum height of 60cm (23 inches). Seeds can be sown directly in their final flowering position throughout spring. If possible, get some seeds from a friend or fellow gardener as the seeds have a short period of viability meaning commercial seeds sometimes fail to germinate. Failing this, you can buy some plants and then scatter the seeds once they have flowered to generate more plants. LIGHT PREFERENCE: Part Shade. Will tolerate full sun where summers are cool and plants can be kept watered.

There are many varieties of aquilegia in different colours and heights. Some varieties prefer full sun and some like more shade. This means there is a suitable aquilegia for every position in the garden. Many varieties have distinctive long spurs on their flowers. The leaves are harmful if eaten. The sawfly lays its eggs on the undersides of the leaves. When they hatch in spring the larvae start to munch the leaves from the edges towards the midveins. They look like grubby caterpillars but develop into a non-stinging wasp-like fly. They are happy in either. Sometimes the white forms can work particularly well to brighten up a dark corner. SOIL REQUIREMENTS: Prefers light shade and humus-rich, well-drained soil. Will tolerate full sun where summers are cool and plants can be kept watered.

May be grown from seed sown directly in the garden in spring (after the danger of frost has passed). Division is possible in spring, but it may take some time for the plant to recover. Remove faded flowering stems to promote additional bloom. Cut to the ground when the foliage declines (around mid-summer).

Aquilegia'Nora Barlow' is arguably the most popular of the named Aquilegia hybrids—and with good reason. It is a curiously fascinating, and quite an old Columbine cultivar, having been bred in the 1960s. The blooms start as highly decorative, tight, green buttons, and then open out to most attractive almost spherical, nodding, spur-less, double flowers. They are composed of many narrow petals of subtle red, deep pink and pale green, surrounding greenish yellow stamens. Aquilegia'Nora Barlow' is at its best from late spring and into summer. To promote optimum stress protection in transit and your success in the garden, bareroot perennials are It was one of the badges of the House of Lancaster. Aquilegia caerulea, with its blue and white flowers, is the state flower of Colorado.

Botanical Style Photographs taken against a white background

Columbines are one of those plants that has a very long history of cultivation. It is mentioned in writings of Thomas Tusser in 1580, John Parkinson in 1629 and in Chaucer and Shakespeare’s Hamlet. You should plant aquilegias in late-summer and they will flower in the following spring. Light requirements Aquilegia gets its name from the Latin ‘aquila’ meaning eagle. This is a reference to the shape of the flowers, which have curved spurs reminiscent of an eagle’s talons. Interestingly the common name, Columbine, also comes from a bird, this time the dove. It is true that the flowers do look a little like birds with their wing-like petals and arching spurs.