Terra's Garden
Monthly Column by Terra Hangen

“To cultivate a garden is to walk with God.”
– Christian Bovee

Sometimes when we think of blue flowers for our gardens, we picture the medium blue, yet there are flowers of the palest ice blue and the deep tones of midnight blue. You can put these together to add an enticing range of blues to your yard.

The Balloon Flower (Platycodon grandiflorum), aka Chinese Bellflower, has flowers of medium blue, white or pale pink, and grows best from seed, sown in spring. Young shoots can also be taken as cuttings. The compact clumps spread slowly, and plant them fifteen inches apart, leaving them undisturbed. They are slow to establish so be patient; these fun and gorgeous blue flowers bloom from June to August and are hardy in zones 3-9. In cool climates they thrive in full sun; in hot climates part sun or dappled shade is ideal.

The genus Baptisia is in the pea plant family, and its flowers are pea like. This North American native (Baptisia australis), aka Blue Wild Indigo or False Indigo, loves full sun and thrives in zones 3-10. Deep blue flowers rise on spikes above the mature plant’s three foot tall by five foot wide mound, in April to August, depending upon where it is growing. Leave space when planting it, since Baptisia doesn’t like to be transplanted once established. They live “forever”, and beginning at age three, can have 50 flower stalks, which will be a show stopper for garden visitors. “Purple Smoke” is a cultivar with smoky violet flowers with a purple eye, hardy in zones 4-9.

Delphiniums [see photo to the right] are perennials that offer handsome blue flowers, including “Belladonna”, bright sky blue, and “Bellamosum”, rich blue, in June and July, and again in late summer if you remove spent flowers. Delphiniums are easy to grow. Staking is a good idea. They are heavy feeders with compost and manure recommended, and half a handful of lime in spring. Zones 3-7.

Iris of all types offer blue flowers, with the Bearded Iris offering Dangerous Mood (light blue and midnight blue), Astro Blue, Baja Blue, Blue Crusader and Blue Temptation -- all delightful shades of blue. Bearded Iris do well in zones 3-8, are weather resistant and dependable.

Hydrangea “Nikko Blue” offers showy blue globe-shaped flowers, thrives in part shade to full sun in zones 6-9, and flowers from early summer to early fall. Geranium “Jolly Bee” has saucer shaped periwinkle blue flowers larger than most geraniums, and a sweet scent, grows in full sun to partial shade to eight to twelve inches tall in zones 5 to 8. Tulipa “Blue Parrot” is famed for its curled blooms on strong stems, in zones 3-8.

Canterbury Bells (Campanula medium) of the charming cup and saucer variety are a garden favorite. This biennial has blue, pink or white bell shaped flowers on a flat base, grows well from seed, and will produce big clusters of cup and saucer flowers in its second year, in zones 4-10. This classic cottage garden flower grows readily from seeds or six packs of small plants.

Blue flowers that grow readily from seed include the Morning Glory “Heavenly Blue”, Lobelias, Forget Me Nots, Ageratum, and Bachelor Buttons aka Corn Flowers.

About the Author: For more of Terra Hangen's garden tidbits, fun garden photos of her black squirrel friend, tips for beginning writers, and a glimpse into her own journey as a writer visit her blog at http://terragarden.blogspot.com. She is celebrating the publication of her first book, Scrapbook of Christmas Firsts, written with 6 Christian writer friends, and scheduled for publication Oct. 2008 by Leafwood Publishers.