Aquilegia Winky Red-White - Columbine

Aquilegia vulgaris 'Winky Red-White', like all plants in the 'Winky' series, brings something new to the realm of garden columbines. This variety offers bicoloured flowers, in white and pink to carmine red, with their corollas facing upwards. The plant is very floriferous and develops in small bushy and vigorous clumps with fine blue-green foliage which is resistant to mildew. It establishes itself and self-seeds freely in the garden, not always faithfully, in moist and semi-shaded soil. This small, picturesque and romantic perennial will add a lot of character to flower beds and pots.

Aquilegia vulgaris 'Winky Red-White' belongs to the family of ranunculaceae. It is a recent cultivar from the 'Winky' series, distinguished as plants with round and double flowers, solid or bicoloured, with excellent floribundance. It is derived from Aquilegia vulgaris (or clematiflora), native to Europe, North Africa, and temperate Asia, which grows in deciduous woodland clearings and meadows. It is a very hardy herbaceous perennial which forms a compact and upright leafy clump, 30 to 35 cm (12 to 14in) tall, 25 cm (10in) wide when flowering, with long flowering stems branching out upwards. From May to June, pretty 4 cm (2in) diameter flowers with long-horned spurs stand atop the stems, grouped in 2 or 3 and facing upwards. Its deciduous blue-green foliage is quite decorative; the cut-out basal leaves give a sense of lightness.

Columbines were cultivated in flower beds in the Middle Ages, and cottage gardens have perpetuated the tradition. Compact and unassuming, they are essential in mixed borders, where they bring lightness and charm. They can be planted in many different places in 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, on the edge of woodlands or on a slope. They will be magnificent when planted in groups to create a dense clump. Pick them just as they open for beautiful country bouquets. In woodlands, in a 'cottage garden' spirit, 'Winky Red-White' can be associated with all kinds of perennials, such as ferns, foxgloves, Bleeding Hearts, or corydalis. Its modest size allows it to be grown in pots, where it performs well.