Aquilegia Mrs M. Nicholls - Columbine

Columbine or Aquilegia 'Mrs M. Nicholls' is a hybrid cultivar with a generous and delicate flowering. Its simple bicoloured flowers are composed of a lavender blue crown adorned with a long spur surrounding a small white corolla and a beautiful golden yellow stamen heart. It blooms from spring to the beginning of summer, on an adorable medium fern-like foliage. This very hardy perennial is as easy to grow as a wild columbine in the sun, in any moist soil. Its flowers are perfect for country bouquets.

Aquilegia ‘Mrs M. Nicholls’ belongs to the ranunculaceae family. It is a cultivar derived from Aquilegia caerulea, undoubtedly the most beautiful of wild columbines, native to the Rocky Mountains in the United States. It is a very hardy herbaceous perennial, forming an upright, leafy clump, 40 cm (16in) high and 50 cm (20in) wide,  from which long flowering stems branch out upwards. From May to June, charming blue and white single flowers with long horned spurs rise up to 70 cm (28in) on top of the stems. Its medium green deciduous foliage is quite decorative, and the cut leaves at the base give a sense of lightness.

Columbines were already cultivated in medieval flower beds, and cottage gardens have perpetuated the tradition. Compact and discreet, they are essential in mixed borders, where they will bring lightness. They can be planted in many areas of the garden, taking care to leave a 20 cm (8in) space around each plant: in the middle of a perennial bed, in a border, at the base of bushes, along the edge of woodlands or on a slope. They will be magnificent when planted in groups to create a beautiful dense clump. Pick them when they are just opening for lovely country bouquets. In flower beds with a cottage garden style, 'Mrs M. Nicholls' can be paired with all kinds of perennials, such as Foxgloves, Bleeding Hearts, or Campanulas with peach leaf foliage. Create beautiful bouquets with its flowers by pairing them with peonies, lilacs, thistles...