Aquilegia Blue Star
Long spurs trailing behind each flower are what make the columbine unmistakable, and the Star Series carries them well. Aquilegia caerulea 'Blue Star' opens violet-blue outer sepals around a white centre, the two colours meeting cleanly, on branching stems above soft blue-green foliage divided into rounded leaflets. Flowering runs from October into December, at the point in spring when borders need height.
Granny's bonnet belongs in cottage gardens, and this one also suits woodland edges, shaded courtyards and mixed borders where its fine foliage fills space early in the season. Bees and other long-tongued insects work the spurs. The flowers cut well for a small vase, though the stems are too slender for large arrangements.
Grow in sun or part shade in free-draining soil that holds some moisture, with afternoon shade in warmer districts. Space plants 30 to 40 cm apart. Aquilegia is naturally short-lived, often two or three good seasons, and replaces itself by seeding freely. Seedlings cross with any other aquilegia nearby, so they come up in mixed colours rather than true to the parent.
Grows 0.6 to 0.75 m tall in flower with a spread of around 0.4 m.
Trimming: Cut flowered stems back to the basal leaves in midsummer. If the foliage looks tired or mildewed at that point, shear the whole plant to the ground and it will push out a fresh mound of clean leaves within a few weeks.
Deadheading: Deadhead as flowers fade to extend the season. Leave two or three heads to ripen if you want replacement plants, since the parent is short-lived and seedlings are how a stand keeps going.
Fertilising: A spring mulch of compost and a light general fertiliser as growth starts is all it asks. Do not overfeed, which produces leaf at the expense of flower stems.
Watering: Keep the soil evenly moist through spring and early summer while the plant is flowering. Plants that dry out at the root drop their leaves early and flower for a shorter time.
Pest Control: Aquilegia leaf miner draws pale winding trails through the leaves and is cosmetic rather than serious. Aphids gather on flower stems. Sawfly larvae can strip foliage quickly in early summer, so check under leaves and pick them off.
Disease Management: Powdery mildew is common on tired midsummer foliage and is best handled by cutting the plant back hard. Remove and bin any growth showing the distorted, congested shoots caused by aquilegia downy mildew.
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