Columbine

Wild Columbine Aquilegia canadensis

Colorado Columbine Aquilegia caerulea

This is the red and yellow columbine native to our area; it blooms March through May. The scientific name Aquilegia means "eagle" and refers to the spur formed at the base of each petal resembling an eagle's talon. The spur contains nectar at the far end. Donald and Lillian Stokes, in their book, A Guide to Enjoying Wildflowers mention an interesting observation comparing our Wild Columbine with its red colors and long spurs to a European Columbine which has blue flowers and short spurs. Wild Columbine is pollinated by hummingbirds, which are attracted by the red color and can reach the nectar with their long tongues. There are no hummingbirds in Europe and thus the European Columbine is pollinated by bees, which are attracted by the blue color and have relatively short tongues.

Another columbine we have growing in the garden is Aquilegia caerulea, which is blue and native to the Rocky Mountains. In fact, it is the state flower of Colorado. Several species of American and European columbines are cultivated and found in flower gardens.

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