Tall Bellflower

Biennial •  $6, 4-inch pot

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Height	3 to 5 ft
Spacing	1 to 2 ft
Sun Exposure	Partial to Shade
Soil Moisture	Medium to Medium-Wet
Bloom Color	Purple-Blue
Bloom Time	July – August
Companion Plantings	Wingstem, Elm-leaved Goldenrod, Yellow Jewelweed, Cardinal Flower
Special Attributes

Campanula americana

This tall, upright biennial is a wonderful choice for cultivation and will persist in the garden via self-seeding despite its short-lived life cycle. Tall Bellflower grows as a basal rosette of leaves during its first year and will then produce a tall, mostly unbranched flowering stalk by early summer that sports many open purple-blue flowers that draw mainly long-tongued bees, but also others, including the specialist bee Megachile campanulae. Butterflies and the occasional hummingbird will also visit these flowers for nectar. Tall Bellflower prefers partial sun or light shade and will resent a harsh afternoon sun, but can otherwise grow in nearly any soil condition. Pair with Cardinal Flower or Wingstem for a stunning color combination.

Deer and bunnies may occasionally feed on the foliage, but it doesn’t seem to be a large problem with this plant. Dead-heading can prolong its flowering period, which is already about 6 weeks or longer. Collect the tiny seeds from upright seed clusters in fall and surface sow by mid-winter. Otherwise, seeds need 30 days of cold, moist stratification prior to sowing for germination to occur. Well-taken care of plants that germinate in early spring may behave as annuals and flower in their first year. An open, flat flower structure distinguishes this plant from other Bellflowers; for this reason, it was recently reclassified as Campanulastrum americanum, although both scientific names are still widely used. Another common name is American Bellflower.

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