Common name: Delphinium
Family: Ranunculaceae, Buttercup
Height x width: 3-8' x 3'
Growth rate, habit: moderate to fast; upright spikes
Foliage: palmately lobed or divided
Flowers: spurred sepals and four petals, usually blue but also red, white, pink, yellow
(photo courtesy Todd Weinmann, ext.nodak.edu)
Hardiness: zones 2 or 3-7
Soil: well-drained, organic
Light: sun
Pests and problems: bacterial leaf spot, crown rot and black leg; fungal crown and stem rots, damping-off, powdery mildew, leaf spots; viruses; aphids, cutworms, borers, leaf miners, beetles, sowbugs, root mealybug, mites, nematodes, slugs
Landscape habit, uses: front to back of borders
Other interest: hollow and brittle stems, short-lived in the South
Other culture: require heavy fertility, staking of tall cultivars; often short-lived (2-3 years)
Propagation: fresh seed or stratify, solid spring basal cuttings
Species:
Belladonna Group(bell-ah-don' ah)--Belladonna Delphinium, zones 3-7, 3-4' x 3', blue shades of single cup-shaped flowers in mid to late-summer, many flower stems at same time, from elatum and grandiflorum crosses
x bellamosum ('Bellamosa')(bell-ah-mo' sah)--Bellamosa Delphinium, light blue, similar to belladonnas
cardinale (car-di-nale')--Scarlet Larkspur, zones 5-9, 4-6' x 3', scarlet red flowers in early summer on loose central spike, native to So. Calif. so prefers dry scrub areas
Elatum Group(ee-laa' tum)--Hybrid Bee Delphinium, zones 3-7, 4-8' x 3', various colors in summer of large and flat flowers on a central raceme, remove central spike after bloom for later rebloom, "bee" refers to center or eye color
grandiflorum (gran-deh-floor' um)--zones 3-7, 1-2' x 1-2', violet to blue or white flowers, loose inflorescence, more rounded shape, good for front of border, grow quickly so often treated as an annual
nudicaule (nude-eh-call')--zones 5-8, 2-3' x 2', red to orange or yellowish flowers in loose stalk in early summer, native to Pacific Northwest in Coast Ranges so prefers dry or rocky site
semibarbatum (semee-bar-baa' tum)--zones 5-8, 2-3' x 2', yellow flowers in early summer, native to dry steppes of NW China so prefers water in spring only, resents hot and damp summers
zalil: semibarbatum
Cultivars:
Series are listed for Elatum Group hybrids:
Blackmore and Langdon Strain--4-6' tall, from famous British firm of same name
Pacific Hybrids (Round Table Series)--over 4' tall
Mid-Century Hybrids--4-5' tall, stronger stems and more mildew resistance
Giant Imperial Series--over 4' tall, annuals in parentage
Connecticut Yankee Series--3-4' tall, heavily branched similar to belladonna types
Magic Fountains Strain--2 1/2 - 3' tall
| Cultivars, other taxa | species, series | flowers |
| 'Astolat' | Pacific Hybrids | lavender-pink, black center |
| 'Black Knight' | Pacific Hybrids | dark purple, almost black |
| 'Blackmore's Blue' | Blackmore and Langdon | purplish "delphinium" blue |
| 'Blauer Spiegel' (Blue Mirror) | grandiflorum | deep blue |
| 'Blauer Zwerg' (Blue Dwarf) | grandiflorum | gentian blue, 10" tall, long bloom |
| 'Blue Bird' | Pacific Hybrids | clear blue, white center |
| 'Blue Butterfly' | grandiflorum | gentian blue, 12-15" tall |
| 'Blue Dwarf':'Blauer Zwerg' | ||
| 'Blue Fountains' | Connecticut Yankee Series | blue, white, mauve |
| 'Blue Mirror':'Blaue Spiegel' | ||
| 'Blue Spires' | Giant Imperial Strain | blue |
| 'Blue Springs' | -- | blue, lavender doubles (separate plants) |
| 'Blue Tit' | Blackmore and Langdon | violet blue |
| 'Butterball' | Blackmore and Langdon | creamy white, yellow center |
| 'Cameliard' | Pacific Hybrids | lavender-blue |
| 'Casa Blanca' | Belladonna Group | pure white |
| 'Clivenden Beauty' | Belladonna Group | sky blue |
| 'Crown Jewel' | Blackmore and Langdon | lavender-blue, black center |
| 'Galahad' | Pacific Hybrids | white, large, late |
| 'Guinevere' | Pacific Hybrids | lavender, pink tones |
| 'Ivory Towers' | Mid-Century Hybrids | white |
| 'King Arthur' | Pacific Hybrids | dark blue |
| 'Lancelot' | Pacific Hybrids | lavender, white eye |
| 'Magic Dark Blue' | Magic Fountains Strain | dark blue, white center |
| 'Magic Heavenly Blue' | Magic Fountains Strain | sky blue, white center |
| 'Magic Lilac-Rose' | Magic Fountains Strain | lilac-rose, white center |
| 'Magic White' | Magic Fountains Strain | pure white |
| 'Moody Blues' | Mid-Century Hybrids | light blue |
| 'Purple Triumph' | Blackmore and Langdon | purple |
| 'Rose Future' | Mid-Century Hybrids | pink |
| 'Strawberry Fair' | Blackmore and Langdon | rose-pink, white center |
| 'Summer Skies' | Pacific Hybrids | light blue, white center |
| 'Turkish Delight' | Blackmore and Langdon | light pink, white center |
| 'Ultra Violet' | Mid-Century Hybrids | dark blue |
('Blue Butterfly' photo courtesy Missouri Botanical Gardens plantfinder)
©Authored by Dr. Leonard Perry, Professor, University of Vermont as part of PSS123 course.
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