Delphinium Clear Springs Lavender and White Series
DELPHINIUM
The Clear Springs Series is derived from the popular Delphinium Pacific Giant Series but, at a height of 30-44 inches, it is considerably shorter. This is why they are sometimes referred to as Delphinium Dwarf Pacific varieties. These perennial delphiniums are cultivated as annual flowers for cutting. Seeds are planted – in greenhouses – between March and June. The seedlings are subsequently kept in the greenhouse or planted outdoors. The first flowers may be expected by mid-May. You could try it out for yourself. Sow the seeds near the surface and stand the propagator in a dark place during germination. Shelter the plants from the wind if you put them out-of-doors. Delphinium ‘Clear Springs Lavender’ bears lavender-blue flowers. The double, bright-white flowers of Delphinium ‘Clear Springs White’ are closely packed along the stems, which are often flattened at their tips. Because the stems remain shorter than those of larkspurs and are also very sturdy, the delphiniums in the ‘Clear Springs Series’ do not need supports in places sheltered from the wind.
Delphinium is a genus of about 250 species of annual, biennial or perennial flowering plants in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native throughout the Northern Hemisphere and also on the high mountains of tropical Africa.
The leaves are deeply lobed with 3-7 toothed, pointed lobes. The main flowering stem is erect, and varies greatly in size between the species, from 10 cm in some alpine species, up to 2 m tall in the larger meadowland species; it is topped by many flowers, varying between purple, blue, red, yellow or white. The flower has five petals which grow together to form a hollow flower with a spur at the end, which gives the plant its name. The seeds are small and shiny black. The plants flower from late spring to late summer, and are pollinated by butterflies and bumble bees. Despite the toxicity, Delphinium species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Dot Moth and Small Angle Shades.
