Campanula persicifolia

Campanula persicifolia is none other than the lovely peach-leaved bellflower that populates so many old gardens. This simple wild plant, which in winter only reveals a modest rosette of leaves, takes off in summer when it blooms for several weeks with large bell-shaped flowers in a beautiful lavender blue. It is a truly accommodating perennial, low-maintenance and very hardy, comfortable in all regions. It is also an excellent cut flower, perfect in romantic and simple compositions.

Campanula persicifolia belongs to the family of bellflowers. It is native to southern and eastern Europe and temperate Asia, and its natural habitat is often wooded and hilly. It is a popular, robust perennial, forming tall and sturdy stems 60 to 80 centimetres (24 to 32 inches) tall when flowering and a clump of leaves 30 centimetres (12 inches) wide. The large single, bell-shaped, bright blue-mauve flowers are magnificent and bloom from June to August if faded flowers are regularly removed. Blooming for 3 months, it is a precious perennial for the transition period between spring and summer. In dry regions, flowering stops in summer while the plant goes dormant, elsewhere it will continue without interruption. Its foliage is semi-evergreen, dark green, with lanceolate leaves resembling peach leaves, hence its name. This plant spreads through underground rhizomes, without becoming invasive. Spontaneous seedlings are not uncommon.

The peach-leaved bellflower will always be welcome in a garden, its pretty flowering clumps punctuating wildflower beds here and there. It accompanies columbines, snapdragons, evening primroses, foxgloves, and annual poppies, coquelourde... there is no shortage of ideas for combinations with this lovely garden plant. To use it as ground cover, plant it in groups of 6 per square metre. It is also useful in slightly dry rock gardens, for example with aubrietas and moss phlox. Combine it with dames rocket, yarrow 'Salmon Beauty', add a touch of grey: ludoviciana artemisia or Stachys byzantina and enjoy the show. Like catmints, the peach-leaved bellflower is a good companion for roses (The Fairy, Little White Pet...). It is also a plant that produces fabulous flowers for bouquets, to be paired with roses and peonies, for example.

About bellflowers:

The base grows stolons that spread underground in all directions ensuring the long-term survival of the plant. The numerous upright stems that arise from this base or stolons can be fertile or sterile. Thus, when one sees a large population of bellflowers, it is often only the clones of a single individual in reality. On the other hand, different species of bellflowers hybridize very easily with each other and are often accompanied by a whole range of intermediate forms, which makes them very interesting for horticulturists.