Aquilegia Alpina Blue is a very beautiful and striking plant with sky blue coloured flowers. It stands on long, thin stems and is surrounded by light green leaves. Aquilegia is also known as Columbine and Granny's Bonnet.The name Aquilegia stems from the Latin word aquilia that means eagle because the spurs of the flower resemble the claws of an eagle. Alpina Blue prefers a sunny plot with half shade and shelter against the wind. It needs a plot with good drainage because it doesn't like wet feet. Very well suited as striking eye-catcher in the border, to grow in large flower pots or containers and as a cutflower. This plant will reseed itself very easily and therefore it's very well suited for use in a cottage garden or wild garden. This hardy perennial flowers in the second year after sowing. Deadhead regurlarly to make sure that this very beautiful and striking plant flowers for a long period. Very well loved by bees, butterflies and other benificial insects. Hardy perennial. Height: 60 cm.
Be carefull: All parts of this flower and the seeds are posionous!
Indoor sowing: March - April
Outdoor sowing: April - end of June
Germination: 14 - 42 days
Germination temp.: 15 - 21 °C
Sowing depth: shallow - ¼ cm
Plant distance: 30 - 35 cm
Plant position: sunny - half shade
Flowering period: April - August
Sow indoors in trays filled with moist potting soil from March on. Sow thinly and shallow and press the seeds gently in the soil. Don't cover the seeds with soil, but use a very thin layer of vermiculite to cover the seeds. Put the trays away at a temperature of approx. 15-21°C. Germination can take up to 2 - 6 weeks. Keep the temperature as even as possible and don't let the temperature drop during the night. Keep moist. Cover the trays with a lid to retain the moisture.
Remove the lid when the seedlings emerge. Transplant the seedlings, when they've two pairs of true leaves, to seperate pots. Harden the seedlings of by putting the outdoors during the day for approx. 10 - 14 days from the beginning of May. Or put the seedlings in a cold frame from the beginning of May. Put the seedlings outdoors from the middle of May, when there's no longer any risk of night frosts. Give them a sunny plot with some shade and shelter against the wind. Aquilegia hates wet soil so give them very good drainage. Keep the plants 30 - 35 cm apart.
Sow outdoors from April till the end of June. Sow thinly and shallow in a well prepared seedbed with moist and loosened soil. Press the seeds gently in the soil and cover them with a very thin layer of soil or sand. Keep moist and weedfree. Thin the seedlings, when they're large enough to handle, to 5 cm apart. Plant the flowers on their definitive spot in September - October. Keep 30 - 35 cm apart. Fertilizing isn't necessary and to much manure can cause the plants to hang their heads. Aquilegia can reseed itself very easily and therefore it's very well suited for the cottage garden or a wild garden. You can also sow this plant on site in borders or meadows. It flowers in the second year after sowing. Deadhead regurlarly to prolong the flowering period.
