Camassia leichtlinii Caerulea Group
Camassia have so much going for them. These stately, tall (to approx 90 cm), clump forming, bulbous perennials are also hardy, long-lived and reliable; they have a lengthy flowering season and they are low maintenance. Although they are generally described as sun lovers, they also thrive in dappled or part shade and if all this is not enough as a recommendation, they make very good cut flowers.
The foliage starts to emerge as early as January or February: mid-green, strappy, linear leaves that beef up until the flower-heads emerge at anytime from April onwards. Camassia come in many shades of blue, violet, pink, and white and the gorgeous star-shaped blooms of my choice today are a rich and sultry lavender blue.
Like other bulbs, when the show is over, their foliage dies back and all trace disappears until the following spring. A moist soil is best during the growing and flowering season, but being summer dormant, they are tolerant of drought during this period. They do well in clay and although they can be grown in many settings, for me they look best naturalised in grass.
Camassia come from North America and the common camas bulb was once considered an important food source for the native American Indian people. The many cultivars we grow are as ornamentals only.
NB Louise has published a beautifully produced book of her plant profiles – A Plant for Each Week of the Year. It costs £9.99 and is for sale in our online shop here.
More NB If you’re not already a subscriber and you’d like a bit more gardening chitchat from the3growbags, please type your email address here and we’ll send you a new post every Saturday morning.
One reply on “Camassia leichtlinii Caerulea Group”
I have just discovered your website whilst wondering what cuttings I could take this month.
I’m thrilled with it ….such common sense advice