Why You Should Grow a Columbine

Columbines don't get a lot of press.  I've never seen them featured in an article and I never hear people talking about them.  You'll never hear folks say -- I've got to get to MOBOT this weekend to check out the columbines.  They are the unsung hero of Spring, providing some unique attributes to the garden.

Here's three reasons you should add a columbine to your garden:

1. It's the earliest source of food for hummingbirds.  It's true.  They bloom right as the hummers arrive in our area.  What a great welcome mat for our migrating friends.  And who doesn't love those little guys buzzing around the yard?  They add another dimension to fluttering things in the garden.
   
2. You can join the "grow native" movement.  At least one variety is native to Missouri. They are already adept to our weather conditions, which means they're easy to grow.  The native variety is very pretty.  It's a reddish-pink with a yellow center.  They reseed themselves, so that's a low maintenance way to increase your supply!
   
3. They have a unique flower.  There really isn't any other flower like them.  They have delicate blooms that hang downwards.  In a light wind, they sway back and forth like small bells attached to wire.  They come in lots of colors, so there's sure to be one that you would find suitable for your garden.

This was a pass along plant from my mother in law.

I found two of these plants underneath the one above.  I think they're seedlings from the parent that didn't stay true to the parent.  Perhaps this is one of the varieties that was used to create the hybrid pale pink.

This is the native variety.

This is a stow away that came in a boxwood I purchased at Lowe's a few years ago.  I didn't know it was there.  The Spring after I planted the boxwood, I noticed some extra foliage growing out of the back of it.  It was a delicate operation to separate the two.