Blue Canterbury Bells (Campanula medium) are classic cottage garden flowers that bring old-world charm and reliable color to spring and early summer gardens. These heirloom biennials grow 18 to 36 inches tall with delicate bell-shaped blooms in shades of blue, attracting pollinators throughout their long flowering season from March through August. Hardy in zones 5 and suited to full sun with moderate water, they're straightforward to grow from seed and reward patient gardeners with weeks of color.
1
Full Sun
Moderate
5-5
36in H x 12in W
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High
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These flowers are true biennials, meaning they spend their first year building a strong root system before putting on their spectacular floral display in spring and summer of the second year. The bell-shaped blooms are genuine crowd-pleasers, drawing bees and other pollinators reliably throughout a long season. Direct sowing in a nursery bed one summer gives you flowering plants the following spring, a rewarding cycle that makes seed saving and perpetuation simple.
Blue Canterbury Bells are grown purely for their ornamental value. Their tall, slender stems and delicate blue bells make them excellent cut flowers for spring bouquets, and their height (18 to 36 inches) allows them to anchor the back of garden borders or cottage garden plantings where their color extends well into summer.
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Sow indoors in late winter to spring, keeping seeds at 65-70°F. Expect sprouting in 14-21 days. Surface sow and press seeds lightly into the soil without covering them, as light aids germination.
Harden off indoor-started seedlings before transplanting outdoors in spring. Transplant the seedling-grown plants to their final garden location in spring for flowering the following year.
Direct sow from spring to midsummer in a nursery bed situated in partial shade for transplanting the following spring. Thin seedlings to 6-8 inches apart when they develop their first set of true leaves.
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