Comments on: Campanula Poscharskyana for Underplanting

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 23:52:01 +0000

Beth, I’ve had these Campanula for two years now. They flowered very late into the fall, and were really hardy, which I really appreciated. The plants seemed to be there in early spring, as I pulled back the mulch. In fact, they were some of the earliest leaves visible as the snow melted, looking fresh and green. Then in late May, they didn’t appear to all be there. It’s possible that I pulled the mulch back too early, and we did have some severe late spring frosts which might have taken some out. I’m not sure. They seemed very cold tolerant when they were flowering at the end of November last year.

By: Beth

Beth — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 21:45:30 +0000

I just tried this campanula this year and it’s growing really well and is a nice spreader. Is this your first year growing it? I’ll be anxious to see what it does its second year.

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 14:02:18 +0000

Rebecca, I try to find a place to put the plants that I’ve dug up, because I always feel sorry for the ones left over on the piece of cardboard on my patio.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 13:27:20 +0000

I feel the same way about not wanting to waste a plant. I let my heliopsis go to seed last year, and have tons of seedlings. I’ve been potting them by the dozen and giving them to anyone and everyone, since I can’t bear to discard them. ;)

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 04:00:39 +0000

Sunita, this Campanula is my longest blooming flower. It even blooms after the first frosts. Last year it bloomed for over 2 months after the frosts came, since we hadn’t had any snow yet, but once the snow comes, their beauty is hidden. It would probably put on an even longer display in an area with a longer growing season.

Those tall Cimicifuga don’t bloom until fall, so the C. poscharskyana give them a little flash until they do.

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 03:54:12 +0000

Shady Gardener, it’s hard for me to pick a favourite Campanula, but in the late fall, when poscharskyana is one of the plants still flowering, it’s my favourite. C. cochlearifolia might be my favourite right now, but the little double C. ‘Haylodgensis’ is pretty endearing too. Sweet woodruff has such fresh looking foliage. I know what you mean about not wanting to just waste a plant you pull out.

Rebecca, it’s a thin line between vigorous enough to be a good groundcover, and “How did you get all the way over there?”, isn’t it. I like Asarum for a foliage groundcover, but I wish it was a little more spreading. The dwarf Campanula are great for underplanting, since they have the pretty blue or purple flowers to add extra dazzle.

By: Sunita

Sunita — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 03:52:28 +0000

What pretty flowers, and that’s a lovely shade of blue. Does it bloom year-round?
That flash of blue must look reallyeye-catching when the perennials which grow over it are not in flower.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 02:36:34 +0000

Beautiful plant, it’s nice to know that it flourishes so nicely, even in what appears to be fairly deep shade. I also use Sweet Woodruff for underplanting, the ones I have in sun/part sun seem to be doing better than the ones in shade. I had some dead nettle, and a creeping stonecrop, but they were taking over and I removed them. I like my groundcover to behave itself. :)

By: Shady Gardener

Shady Gardener — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 02:09:27 +0000

Northern Shade, Is this your favorite campanula? It really is pretty under the other plants. My favorite (for the moment) underplanting is the Sweet Woodruff. It’s doing very well in a partly sunny/partly shady spot, even though I think it may be happier with more shade. It really does move out and about, but it’s not hard to keep in bounds if you don’t mind pulling it. I sometimes have a hard time pulling things OUT of a flower bed if I’m not giving it away! ;-)

By: Northern Shade

Northern Shade — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:14:33 +0000

Joanne, it’s too bad the ground elder got in there. I know you wouldn’t want to leave a piece of its root behind, entangled with the other plants. There are lots of great Campanula, and I’m pleased that so many do well here.

Marie, I like the way the blue colour of Blue Waterfall shines between the branches of the taller plants, as you look down. These ones bloomed a long time into the late fall, but I lost some in early spring.

Joy, my C. racemosa has few branches close to the ground, so it works really well. The C. simplex is fuller at the bottom, so there isn’t as much room for them. The poscharskyana work really well under the Hydrangea shrubs, and the colour seems to go with all of the Hydrangea blooms, from white to pink.