Family: Ranunculaceae
Name: Aquilegia canadensis - Wild Columbine
Bloom Time: May-June
Flowers: bicolor red and yellow
Soil Condition: dry to moist, well drained
Light: Partial Shade, Shade
Height: 20-36" tall by 12-18" wide
Native Range: Eastern United States including Long Island
Zone: 3 to 8
Aquilegia canadensis is a native perennial that will self sow readily in the garden creating a naturalized effect. The showy, nodding, bicolor flowers are a nice brightener for shady spots and the blue green foliage is a great accent in the garden. Flowers are edible but the rest of the plant is toxic. In full sun the foliage may burn unless kept consistently moist. It is moderately deer and rabbit resistant and very drought tolerant. Does well in a planter.
Maintenance: seeds may be collected when the seed pods turn brown and begin to open. Not as prone to leaf miner like European Columbine, but it may still be affected. Remember the leaf miner is another insects snack, so do not cut the foliage back.
Benefits: another reason to not cut the foliage back is it's host to the Columbine Duskywing, nectar source that attracts hummingbirds and other long tongued pollinators,
Companion Plants: Geranium maculatum - Wild Geranium, Asarum canadense - Wild Ginger, Carex pensylvanica - Oak Sedge, Athyrium filix-femina - Lady Fern
pics: KMS Native Plants LLC
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References:
1. https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=aqca
2. https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/eastern-red-columbine-aquilegia-canadensis/
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