Growing Delphiniums

"The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers." ~Basho."

Delphiniums make the cottage garden truly splendid! Every year we are astonished by their regal colors and elegant stature. They come in an array of beautiful colors but are most famous for their astounding blue shades. Delphiniums' peak bloom period is early to midsummer and may continue late into the fall. Each varieties bloom time can vary up to a week and thereby provide additional bloom time. We cut back spent blooms in our garden (just leave a couple of inches of growth near the soil level.) and that further encourages later blooming. We have even seen blooms in November! Read on to learn more about growing Delphiniums or you can view our Delphinium selection here.

 

 

You don't have to live in Great Britain to grow impressive Delphiniums! They are hardy from zone 3-8. That covers most of the United States except for the warmest areas of the country. We think the real secret for growing Delphiniums reliably is to remember that they are heavy feeders so the more compost (lots of manure is good!) that you can put in your flower bed the more magnificent your delphiniums are likely to be. A little lime or wood ash is also beneficial if you know your soil is acidic. If you live on the warmer side of their range (heat and humidity are hard on them), you may want to allow some shade to fall on them during the day and mulch them to keep the roots cooler and consistently moist (not too wet or dry). Mulching in winter is not necessary but if you live in an area with little snowfall and the ground is subject to extreme heaving this will protect the dormant plant.

We still think that Delphiniums are one of the easiest plants to grow. Even when we have put them in less than ideal spots and never got around to pampering them, they still thrived and bloomed wonderfully. We've never seen them troubled by insects or disease and the hummingbirds are endlessly attracted to them.

Our Delphiniums selection is huge! In fact, we don't know where else you could find so many Delphiniums varieties to choose from. Some varieties are exceptionally tall like the Pacific Giants and require staking for full effect. We are particularly proud to again offer Dowdeswell's New Millennium delphiniums. They are the foremost Delphinium breeders in the world today! Tall as well, they are packed with large blossoms and bred for both heat and cold hardiness. For shorter but sturdier varieties, Magic Fountain Delphiniums can provide lots of dramatic flair but with less need for staking. In the front of the border are the smallest delphiniums: Summer Nights and Summer Colors. Somewhere in the middle all these types resides the vibrant Belladonna types: free flowering, electric blue and exceptional cut flowers. Whether you pick by height, color, or habit, all your choices are simply lovely!

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