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Key characteristics

Family: Ranunculaceae
Height: 24 in to 36 in
Width: 18 in to 24 in
Flower color: Pure white star shaped flowers with long elegant spurs and yellow centers
Foliage color: Blue green finely divided foliage with soft fern like texture
Bloom time: Late spring to early summer
Light: Full sun to partial shade
Water: Moderate
Maintenance: Low; deadhead spent flowers and cut back after blooming if desired
Growing zone: USDA zones 3 to 9
Wildlife: Hummingbirds, butterflies and pollinators attracted to nectar rich flowers

Perennials

Aquilegia caerulea 'Crystal Star'

Crystal Star Columbine

Aquilegia caerulea 'Crystal Star' produces upward-facing flowers with white outer petals surrounding soft buttery-yellow inner petals and long, elegant spurs, blooming from late spring into early summer. Blue-green leaves are finely divided into rounded leaflets, creating a delicate, fern-like mound with a soft texture through the season. The flowers rise above the foliage on slender stems, their open, star-like form adding movement while attracting hummingbirds and pollinators during the bloom period.

Light

Full sun to partial shade

Water

Moderate

Bloom time

Late spring to early summer

Find this plant

Works well in

Borders
Cottage Gardens
Pollinator Gardens
Hummingbird Gardens
Cut Flower Gardens

Companion plants

Bergenias · Sedums · Lungworts · Daylilies · Japanese anemones · Bleeding hearts

Design tip

Summer flowers carry the middle of the season, so place it where the bed needs color once spring bulbs fade. Because it is easy about light, use it to carry a planting from a sunny end of the bed into the shadier side.

Printable plant sheet (PDF)