skip to main content

Columbine coloring?

15 years ago

Late last summer I planted two plants which were marked "Rocky Mountain Columbine", with a picture of a blue and white columbine on the plant tag. They bloomed for the first time last week, and they are all pale yellow! I don't know much about plants, so this question may be very silly, but is there anything about my soil that could cause them to be yellow, or did the nursery mark them incorrectly? I was SO looking forward to having lovely periwinkle blue and white flowers, and am actually pretty disappointed at what came up.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (2)

coolplantsguy
15 years ago
Sounds like mis-labelled plants to me. Take them back and ask for a refund or exchange.

My understanding is that the "Rocky Mountain Columbine" is a common name for Aquilegia caerulea, which is indeed blue and white.

There are otherwise, many "hybrid" seed strains that are available in a variety of colours. Technically, they should not be labelled as above.
terrene
15 years ago
Sounds like your Columbine is actually Aquilegia chrysantha, Golden Columbine, which is also native to your state. I bought some a few years ago and thought it was beautiful, but it only lasted 2 years and died out. I can understand your disappointment because Rocky mtn columbine is gorgeous.

Columbine is very easy to start from seed if you are so inclined. This year I've sowed seeds for Aquilegia caerulea 'Mixed Colors', which supposedly has other colors than Blue & white. Hopefully they'll bloom a little next year and we'll see!
Related Discussions
Have: Bird's eye chili, Ipomoea aquatica- Want: Columbine seeds
Q
Comments (6)
@wally-1936, I've never heard about that website and visited last night. I'm going to try, send the SASE today. Found some shade-loving perennial and columbine seeds too. Thank you so much for the info :)
...See More
OFFER: Columbine (various colors)
Q
Comments (0)
Looking for double peony poppy seeds (black, red, purple.
...See More
Columbine Color Change
Q
Comments (2)
I suspect that what you have is some self-polination and self-seeding going on...I think purple is a dominant color in the columbines, so it isn't surprising you don't see any yellow anymore. I'd wager though, that in a couple of years you'll see yellow again, and maybe pink and red....Hybrids do this more than species...it's like a couple where one partner is blue-eyed, and one brown. The offspring will be all brown, but (if incest is allowed), then the next generation may have a blue eyed kid amongst the brown, that is, of course assuming that the original parents have double blue and double brown genes...
...See More
Columbine changed color?
Q
Comments (2)
Flower color changes can be triggered by very small changes in soil pH and/or the the absence of metal ions in the soil. Metal ions are necessary to cement the color determining pigments together. Light and temperature can also affect colors, but usually only to the extent that colors are more or less vibrant. Columbines are noticeably susceptible to soil pH. I have a blue one that appeared in my garden several years ago and seedlings from it, just 5 ft. away are pink/salmon colored. You might experiment with changing the soil pH slightly, by adding small amounts of lime (alkaline) or aluminum sulfate (acidic), and see if the original yellow color returns. Rb
...See More

Related Stories

GARDENING FOR BUTTERFLIES Great Design Plant: Columbine Grows Happily in Shade and Sun

By Paintbox Garden

Its ethereal beauty comes from complex forms and wide-ranging colors, but columbine’s benefits are highly attractive too

GARDENING FOR BUTTERFLIES Butterfly Gardening: Delight the Eyes With Living Sculptures

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Surprise and thrill with a garden that attracts magical winged creatures, bringing color, movement and life

GARDENING GUIDES Top 12 Summer-Blooming Perennials for Deer-Resistant Drama

Can you have garden color, fragrance and exciting foliage with hungry deer afoot? These beauties say yes

CONTAINER GARDENS 7 Deer-Resistant Flowers for Your Summer Containers

Grow these as protection for edibles or just for their colorful beauty — deer might not like them, but everyone else will

EARTH DAY Create a Container Wildlife Habitat for Hummingbirds and Butterflies

By Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Don’t let limited space prevent you from welcoming wildlife into your garden

INSPIRING GARDENS Native Plants Inspire and Educate at NYC's Botanical Garden

By Paintbox Garden

Stroll through the new Native Plant Garden with us to get great ideas for plant choices and sustainability

SUMMER GARDENING 6 Water-Wise Perennials for Blazing High-Altitude Summers

By Jocelyn H. Chilvers

Scorching weather and high elevations don't have to mean scraggly plantings. These blooms are as gorgeous as they are tough

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Thalictrum Dasycarpum Dresses Up Shorelines

By Pollination Press LLC

Plant tall meadow-rue on central U.S. shorelines and in moist gardens for its frilly cream flowers and blue-green softly lobed foliage

0

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Foamflower Cushions Shady Garden Areas

By Curtis Adams

Try evergreen ground cover Tiarella cordifolia for a soft look all year — one the rabbits and deer won’t mess with

SPRING GARDENING 7 Great Container Plants for Early-Spring Appeal

Good things sometimes come to those who impatiently head to the nursery for plants that can take a chill

Sponsored

Stanford Designs

2 Reviews

Luxury Interior Design Services | Northern Virginia

More Discussions

Switchgrass and root rot

0