Why does it seem like there aren't many blue flowers? I can think of ageraturm but some will argue that is blue/purple color. pansies but they usually are various colors. Iris can be found in blue..Agastache Blue Fortune? emerald blue creeping phlox..Does anybody grow plumbago? I saw it on some website but it didn't really tell that much about it. There are a lot of flowers with the name blue in them but they are not a true light blue color. Nikko hydrangeas are blue..One entire side of my house has Nikko blue hydrangeas..planted by original owner..How could I forget about them? Can you think of anymore?
Blue flowers
Forgot about forget-me-not, balloon flowers, Spanish bluebelles, Batchelor buttons. There's that Blue Paradise garden phlox that I want. Guess there are more out there than I realized.
My favorite true blue one is Anagallis monelli. There are also some true blue Salvias (azurea, patens, 'Black and Blue', sagittata, uliginosa, probably others as well), Lobelia erinus, Linum perenne, and some Delphiniums (like 'Blue Mirror'). There are others too, that's just what I can think of off the top of my head
True blue is not a very common color in the plant world--there definitely are some but it's definitely not as common as the other colors. Of course since it's rare, everyone wants it, so people who hybridize plants often try to achieve as close to blue as they can. But since many flowers can't actually be true blue, the closest you'll get is lavender or purple, but they'll often give the plant a name with "blue" in it anyway since that's as close to blue as you can get with that particular plant.
I was surprised with this one yesterday morning :)
Many gentians are true blue, e.g. Gentiana verna, septemfida, paradoxa, acaulis, asclepiadea... however, if you are in a wet, humid area, you may have to use rock garden conditions to grow some of these.
Many penstemons are also the truest blue, but the same considerations may apply.
More (some of these are alpines):
Delphinium grandiflorum
Moltkia petraea (I must try this)
Dracocephalum spp., e.g. D. ruyschiana, grandiflora
Lithodora diffusa (not something I can grow here)
Allium caeruleum, sikkimense, cyaneum
Many Mertensia spp., e.g. M. primuloides is very dark blue
Many Pulmonaria spp.
Lindelofia anchusoides
Eritrichium spp. - Eritrichium canum var. canum is an easy one, among many more difficult alpine species
Caryopteris divaricata
Edit: Also...
Eryngium planum, alpinum
Echinops ritro
This message was edited Sep 6, 2010 11:34 AM
This is my gentian. It is now blooming. It is a lot darker than the picture.
There's blue daze (evolvulus). It's tiny but definitely blue...
And of course, good ol' morning glories ... these are volunteers
oops ... I am so dumb. Those are annuals ... but they ARE blue! :-)
Yes, Pippi. The beautiful tropical sky blue "Plumbago" plant is everywhere down here. "Blue Daze" is also quite popular in South Florida, primarily in the summer. Grew these blue flowers on the side of the house last winter. "Imperial Giant" Larkspur on the left and Texas Bluebonnets on the right.
A better picture of the "Texas Bluebonnets". I didn't realize they were going to grow so big and wide. They were overtaking the grass.
There are true blue veronicas. Blue flax and blue sun flax(annual).
The blue Himalayan poppies. Blue knoll heteropappus (annual).
Which veronicas are true blue, CL? I've bought a few that were supposed to be blue, but turned out to be lavender. Very disappointing!
I can add anchusa azurea to the list of true blue perennials.
I think the blue one that I have is veronica spicata.
The flowers start out a true blue and fade to a mauve shade.
This one grows to about 30 inches so is a tall variety.
Whitley's speedwell which is a ground cover type also is true blue.
Another which I just planted this summer and has not flowered is called
veronica gentiana ----which I hope will be a true blue?
Yes, Veronica gentiana is a very pale blue.
Thanks for the info. I was going to give up on all veronicas called blue, but maybe I'll try again.
Some other blue perennials: wild Blue Phlox (Phlox divaricata)
Great Blue Lobelia (another wild)
Downy Skullcap (yet another wild)
Tradescantia
False Blue Indigo (Baptisia)
My fall blooming ageratum (sp?) is blue, it reseeds itself here so it may be considered an annual in zone 5, not sure.
Eupatorium coelestinum, wild ageratum is considered a perennial (hardy zone 4-9). I do have plants that overwinter here in zone 5a.
I even have one that has flowers that are "pink" and another that is "white".
I love this plant, it is so pretty in the fall. I look forward to this plant, blooming in the fall.
Thanks for that information, obliqua, I'm always surprised where it pops up.
Pippi, plumbago does well here, but it's only a perennial if the winter is mild. Such a pretty color of bue, though, and it has a nice drapey growing habi-- and it blooms all season here if you keep it pruned a bit. I think it's worth planting every year as an annual. Also, it doesn't mind a little shade.
A blue flowering plant which I have been pleased with is a wildflower:
gilia capitata or Blue Thimble Flower. The flowers are small,but they are true blue.
It sent up seed heads so I am hoping it will reseed itself.
This message was edited Oct 18, 2010 4:52 AM
This message was edited Oct 18, 2010 4:54 AM
Wow, that Blue Thimble Flower looks great!
It will be interesting to see if it reseeds for you.
Be sure to let us know!
Here's a salvia still going strong mid-October.
I guess that I should have saved some of the seeds
from the Blue Thimble Flower, but I just let them scatter on the ground.
We shall see how they reseed for next season.