Traversing the subalpine meadows of Europe’s Alps and Apennines mountains, this tall arresting species flaunts nodding dark purple blooms with short spurs and prominent yellow stamens, which stretch well beyond the rich-as-velvet nearly black petals. Strong lanky stems anchor the mesmerizing blooms, while the handsome glaucous greenery provides contrasting foliar hues for Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola’ and Lysimachia ‘Aurea’.

Blooms April–early June

Size: 18" – 20" high x 12" wide.

Hardy to zone 3.

Dangling like delicate Japanese lanterns, the plum and soft yellow blossoms are topped with wispy, tapered spurs that curve inward. Like an ideal small-space ornament, this compact Aquilegia offers a demure mound of foliage and arresting colors.

Blooms May–mid-June.

Size: 8" high x 8" – 10" wide.

Hardy to zone 6.

Discovered by Lawrence Clemens near Corbett, Maryland and first introduced by Bluemont Nursery, this delightful chance seedling of the native eastern species parades nodding lantern-shaped creamy-yellow flowers with notable stamens and long spurs aloft short slim stems. Dainty 3-lobed green leaves craft a slightly more compact habit, which is reputed to be longer lived than many other Columbines. A popular destination for bumblebees and Ruby-throated hummingbirds, ‘Corbett’s floriferous pastel-hued display can brighten cottage gardens, sun-dappled rockeries, steps and pots, while tucked among spring bulbs or alongside Pulmonaria ‘Bertram Anderson’ and Epimedium ‘Dark Beauty’.

Blooms April–May

Size: 12" – 18" high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

Discovered by Kansas’ Dyck Arboretum of the Plains and introduced by Jelitto Seeds, this superb softly hued gem is shorter than its wild eastern cousin. The nodding, small-spurred blooms dress up with pretty pink outer petals, encompassing a buttery-yellow corolla. All this floral delight tops refined 3-lobed ferny foliage that can be nestled amid Pulmonarias or Helleborus.

Blooms May–July

Size: 10" – 12" high x 10" – 12" wide.

Hardy to zone 3.

Bathed in brilliant golden yellow hues, fragrant extra large blossoms, some reaching over 3 in. across, achieve an elegant grace note as long tapered recurving spurs stream from behind. Promising a repeat bloom with attentive deadheading, the blithe open flowers are borne on well-branched stems above a compact ferny mound of lobed bluish green leaves. The native species, Aquilegia chrysantha, wanders throughout the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico, while this robust Plant Select introduction brings an illuminated show to woodland gardens, the rockery and even a cut bouquet.

Blooms April–May

Size: 2-1/2' high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

As if in flight, ‘Yellow Queen’s long outward-curving spurs trail behind its cheerful, bright yellow flowers. Soaring on tall slender stems above bushy and bluish green, fernlike foliage, the upfacing, fragrant blooms are good-sized and abundant. Owing its vigor and floriferous nature to its wild southwestern cousin, Aquilegia chrysantha, this cultivar makes a sunny partner for the lush purple leaves of Anthriscus ‘Ravenswing’.

Blooms April–May.

Size: 2-1/2' high x 15" wide.

Hardy to zone 4.

Promising plenty of nodding vivid blue-violet flowers brightened by white centers, this hearty Columbine forms a tidy low-growing mound with lobed deep green foliage. Cozied along a stone wall or garden path, ‘Blue Angel’ bestows enchanting detail.

Blooms April–early June

Size: 8" high x 10" wide.

Hardy to zone 4.

Blooms April–June

Size: 10" high x 12" wide.

Hardy to zone 4.

Large long-spurred blooms and overall classic good looks set this exquisite cottage-garden favorite apart. Enlivened by glowing white centers with yellow stamens, the divine upward-facing sky-blue flowers float above a vigorous foundation of natty fern-like foliage. ‘Heavenly Blue’ can festoon a bouquet or dwell in well-drained sites beside Aquilegia ‘Yellow Queen’ for a cheery color combination that’s reminiscent of ProvenÇal table linens. 

Blooms May–July

Size: 2' 0" – 2-1/2' high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

Introduced more than 25 years ago by Jelitto Seeds, this sturdy German cultivar is a beacon of loveliness. Long, upstanding branched stems cushion the plethora of nodding salmon-pink blooms above glaucous blue-green foliage. ‘Heidi’ is ideal for garnishing your next bouquet or teaming with Brunnera ‘Mr. Morse’ or Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’ in a bright, yet not too sunny nook.

Blooms May–July

Size: 2-1/2' high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

A glowing candidate for the shade garden, large, long-spurred pure white flowers alight firm lengthy stems. This sophisticated cultivar can be planted with Brunnera ‘Dawson’s White’ to create a spirited combination of blue and white.

Blooms April–May

Size: 2' 0" high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

Inhabiting haunts from southern Russia to northern Turkey plus Iran, this tall growing hummingbird mecca offers 2 in. wide blooms with cupped white petals, brilliant blue sepals and short, markedly hooked pale spurs. The cornucopia of fanciful blooms, perched upon wiry stems, gazes down at fine-cut glaucous greenery. Hard to find and easy to grow, Aquilegia olympica promises a pleasing foliar effect throughout the season, while positioned alongside Epimedium ‘White Queen’ and Helleborus ‘Joseph Lemper’.

Blooms May–early July

Size: 18" – 2' 0" high x 12" – 18" wide.

Zone 3/4.

Initially described in 1856 and named for its long prominently pointed sepals, this comely Columbine cavorts the open forests, rocky slopes and exposed meadows of Europe and northern Asia. Attractive rounded green leaflets plus slender nimble stems give way to nodding blooms that feature maroon sepals, short-hooked spurs and creamy-yellow inner petals. Coveted by butterflies, hummingbirds and cut flower enthusiasts, Aquilegia oxysepala snubs bunnies and deer, while enjoying sunny, dry to moderately moist nooks with good drainage.

Blooms May–July

Size: 2' 0" – 2-1/2' high x 12" – 15" wide.

Hardy to zone 5.

Some 75 years ago, Joseph Rock gathered seed from this classy perennial in China’s Szechwan kingdom. Elevated on stems that mimic a dancer’s grace, the pendent flowers are lavishly colored in deep lilac shades. White-edged corollas embellish the large, short-spurred blooms above a pleasing foliar mound. 

Blooms May–June

Size: 15" – 20" high x 12" wide.

Hardy to zone 6.

Hailing from central Asia, this splendid species beckons us with large, dazzling deep blue flowers described by short spurs and clear white corollas. The nodding, hummingbird and butterfly-friendly blooms reside on graceful 14 in. stems above a cold-hardy blue-green mound of attractive rabbit- resistant leaves. Happiest in fertile soil and coastal sun, or bright shade elsewhere, Aquilegia sibirica can be tucked into troughs, rock work or alpine gardens.

Blooms May–June

Size: 14" high x 10" – 12" wide.

Hardy to zone 3.

For its early blooming, uniquely hued flowers plus fine-cut appearance, this sweetly perfumed 1902 heirloom was recently nominated Plant of the Month by the North American Rock Garden Society. The compact cold-hardy mound of biternate blue-green foliage supports nodding clustered flowers with zingy chartreuse anthers, plum-flushed pale green sepals and purplish cocoa-colored petals topped by short straight spurs. Native to eastern Siberia, Japan and western China, Aquilegia viridiflora sprouts violet-tinged new growth, entrances the pollinators plus lends a dainty softness to rockeries and cottage gardens.

Blooms April–June

Size: 16" – 20" high x 12" wide.

Hardy to zone 3.

Exhibiting the easy elegance that assures Columbine’s well-known charm, exquisite short-spurred, double flowers festooned in deep ruby-red hues rest atop long, sturdy stems like lazy nodding bells. Sumptuous against a winsome clump of bluish green ferny leaves, the blooms create an intoxicating color echo when combined with Epimedium x rubrum’s red blossoms and the dark foliage of Heuchera ‘Taffeta’.

Blooms May–June

Size: 2' 0" – 2-1/4' high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

A shining star of the cut flower trade, ‘Blue Barlow’ prances elaborate, fully double deep violet-blue blossoms—upward-facing, spurless and nearly 2 in. across—on tall lithe stems. Grayish blue-green divided foliage shapes a tailored lacy mound below the plush, long-lasting Dahlia-like inflorescences that everyone adores, especially hummingbirds and butterflies. Ideal for bright dappled recesses, this uniquely beautiful Columbine appreciates well-drained, compost-rich soil and a cutback after the blooms are spent.

Blooms May–July

Size: 2-1/2' high x 18" wide.

Hardy to zone 3.

Steeped in a Granny Smith apple-green hue, the new ferny leaves plus nodding flower buds set the stage for unique, green-rimmed, creamy-white double blossoms. The spurless, multipetaled flowers initially transmute luminous green tones, later adopting a wide flattened appearance, enhanced by starburst-like points. The epitome of ornate elegance, ‘Green Apples’ can grace a vase, enliven a cottage garden or be utilized as a foil for fading spring bulbs.

Blooms May–July

Size: 2' 0" – 2-1/2' high x 18" wide.

Hardy to zone 3.

A merry union of speckles, splotches and streaks in Irish green, chartreuse and golden hues embellish each marbled leaf, rendering no two alike. Spurred deep purple pendulous flowers, poised on tall slender rosy stems lend splendid dark accents. Deemed the most treasured of variegated Aquilegias, this colorful Jelitto Seeds introduction gilds a shady nook, while a hard trim after blooming refreshes its leafy clump.

Blooms April–May.

Size: 2' 0" high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

Applauded as the best golden-leafed Aquilegia, this resplendent perennial affords fine textured mounds of lucent yellow foliage in spring that soften to light green by summer. Though ‘Mellow Yellow’s head-turning visage is its signature, the charming creamy-white blooms further heighten the foliar fanfare, especially when planted near contrasting leaves like Asarum caudatum f. album and Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’.

Blooms May–July

Size: 2' 0" – 3' 0" high x 15" – 18" wide.

Hardy to zone 3.

‘William Guiness’s dark purple blossoms skirt snow-white corollas, lending dramatic contrast and an element of surprise. Deeply incurved spurs stand sentinel over each nodding bloom, which rises 2 ft. on lean steady stems from a leafy bluish green mound. Set this dark knight near the gilt foliage of Campanula ‘Dickson’s Gold’ for a captivating union.

Blooms May–June

Size: 2' 0" high x 15" wide.

Zone 3/4.

We grew this unusual cultivar from seed, and its intensely golden springtime foliage gradually transmutes into light yellow summer garb, imparting a bright glow to darker garden corners. Gorgeous bicolored blue and rose blooms heighten the display while the deep greens of Pulmonaria ‘Benediction’ and Omphalodes ‘Joy Skies’ furnish an invigorating contrast.

Blooms April–May.

Size: 18" – 2' 0" high x 12" – 15" wide.

Hardy to zone 4.