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| Diamonds blue delphinium (Photo by Allen Owings) |
An exceptional, blue-flowered, cool-season bedding plant called Diamonds Blue delphinium (Delphinium chinensis Diamonds Blue) is a Louisiana Super Plants selection for fall 2013.
If you love blue flowers, Diamonds Blue delphinium is really, truly blue – an intense, vivid, almost-electric blue that sings out loud and clear in the flower garden.
Diamonds Blue is a variety of Delphinium chinensis, a species that is bushier and lower-growing that most other delphiniums. These plants are only about 14 to 16 inches tall and about 12 to 14 inches wide. This compact growth habit makes them ideal for containers and the front or middle of cool-season flower beds.
The uniquely beautiful flowers and compact growth habit are not the only reasons Diamonds Blue was named a Louisiana Super Plants selection. In variety trials at the LSU AgCenter Hammond Research Station, Diamonds Blue showed more vigor and stamina over a longer period than other delphiniums.
This variety produces more flowers over a longer blooming season as well. And it has no major insect or disease problems.
The foliage of Diamonds Blue delphinium provides a beautiful background for the flowers. Rich green and finely divided, the texture is delicate. But don’t let that fool you – these plants are tough and resilient and hardy through winter freezes.
Allen Owings
Rick Bogren