Columbine Double Pleat Blackberry™

It's impossible to do these incredible flowers justice with a photograph and words -- you're simply going to have to grow them for yourself! Layers and layers of rich violet petals edged in white dangle from sturdy stems in late spring and early summer, luring in hummingbirds and compliments on a daily basis. Starred with a golden center, these are the most magnificently beautiful and distinctive flowers you will find anywhere!

These double-flowered blooms are held in the "hose-in-hose" form that gives Columbine its common name of Granny's Bonnet (as opposed to the long-spurred form, also uniquely lovely but very different!). Absolutely breathtaking, they arise atop tall, slender stems on plants 24 inches high and about 12 to 15 inches wide. The blooms begin in late spring in most climates, continuing for weeks into summer. Cut some for the vase -- you've simply GOT to show them off indoors as well as out! -- but save a few for the hummingbirds!

Columbine is a hardy perennial, unafraid of ferociously cold winters, dry summers, and nibbling deer. It thrives in full sun and any well-drained soil, and can tolerate a bit of shade in the south and southwest. Start the seeds in your Bio Dome 6 to 8 weeks before last anticipated frost. (If you're using seed flats, place the seeds on top of the medium so they receive light. In the Bio Dome, they'll germinate either inside the hole in the Bio Sponges or on top.) Time was that you had to wait a year for blooms from Columbine seed, but not anymore! They'll take their time germinating -- a month is about standard -- but once they're up, they're off! You'll enjoy a full crop of these amazing blooms just a few months after sowing the seeds, and the lacy foliage will charm you long past bloomtime. Discover the joy of Columbines from seed with Double Pleat Blackberry . . . and while you're at it, don't forget that old favorite, Origami Mix! (It's been our customers' choice for many a season now!) Zones 3-8. Pkt is 20 seeds.