With its purple flowers, the clustered bellflower is a great eye-catcher, especially in natural gardens. This is how to plant and care for.
Profile of clustered bellflower:
Scientific name: Campanula glomerata
Plant family: bellflower family (Campanulaceae)
Other names: Dane’s blood
Sowing time: spring
Planting time: spring to autumn
Harvest time: June to July
Location: sunny to partially shaded
Soil quality: gritty to loamy, calcipholous, nutrient rich
These information are for temperate climate!
Use in: flower beds, bouquets, borders, cottage garden, flower garden, natural garden
Winter hardiness: hardy, USDA Plant Hardiness Zones: 2 (-43 °C / -45 °F)
Bee and insect friendly: Yes
Plant characteristics and classification of clustered bellflower
Plant order, origin and occurrence of clustered bellflower
The clustered bellflower (Campanula glomerata) is native to Europe and the Middle East and is particularly common in grassy and shrubby locations. Campanula glomerata belongs to the bellflower family (Campanulaceae).
Characteristics of clustered bellflower
Plant
The stoloniferous (runners-forming) clustered bellflower has an upright habit and is up to 50 centimeters (20 in) high. The flower shoots sprout from leaf rosettes.
Leaves
The leaves are slightly reddish in color and summer green. While the basal leaves appear egg-shaped, the stem leaves are lanceolate and slightly hairy.
Blossoms
The clustered bellflower owes its name to the bell-shaped flowers that appear in dense, deep purple-blue clusters from June to July. They sit at the end of the stems.
Fruit
The fruits of the Dane’s blood are capsule fruits.
Clustered bellflower – cultivation and care
Location
The warmth-loving clustered bellflower likes a sunny to partially shaded spot in the garden.
Soil
The soil should be rich in nutrients, calcareous, and moderately moist. The plant can react a bit sensitive to too much moisture. Since permeable soils are preferred, it is recommended that the soil is mixed with sand before planting.
Planting
The clustered bellflower can be planted from spring to autumn. About six perennials should be planted per square meter (10 sq ft) at a distance of 40 to 45 centimeters (16 to 18 in).
Care
Cutting back the Dane’s blood after flowering promotes a second flowering. To prevent the plant from becoming bare, you should divide it every six to ten years or so.
Propagation
Dane’s blood can be propagated either by division or by sowing. It can be divided in spring or autumn.
Diseases and pests
Campanula glomerata is susceptible to various fungal diseases, including Coleosporium tussilaginis. Since the fungus is also found on coltsfoot and Scots pines, clustered bellflowers are particularly at risk in their immediate vicinity. Other fungal diseases are the rust fungus (Aecidium campanulastri) and the Campanula rust (Puccinia campanulae), which occur mainly on weakened plants. An infestation can be recognized by orange-colored pustules on the underside of the leaves.
Warning: They can easily be overlooked. If spots already form on the upper side of the leaves, the leaves quickly die off and the plants usually can no longer be saved.
Wintering
The clustered bellflower is very hardy down to -43 °C / -45 °F. There are no measures for wintering necessary.
Use in the garden
The clustered bellflower fits perfectly into the natural garden. It looks good in combination with other wild perennials, but is also very suitable for planting beds. Recommended planting partners are, for example, the woolly yarrow (Achillea tomentosa), the snow-in-Summer (Cerastium tomentosum), the Lance-leaved coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata) or the wild thyme (Thymus serpyllum). Some varieties are also great cut flowers.
Varieties
- The variety ‘Alba’ has a white flower and is slightly taller than the species. It is very similar to the ‘Snow Crown’
- ‘Joan Elliott’ is only 40 centimeters (16 in) high and has strikingly large, purple flowers that are very suitable for cutting and bloom early
- The dark-leafed, deep-blue blooming variety ‘Purple Pixie’ is also comparatively low at 35 centimeters (14 in)
- The dark blue ‘Dahurica’ is a proud 60 centimeters (24 in)
- As an extremely vigorous variety, ‘Superba’ is also to be mentioned, the flowers of which are dark purple in color.
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