About Delphinium grandiflorum L.
Delphinium grandiflorum is a Delphinium species with the common names Siberian larkspur and Chinese delphinium. It is native to Russia and China. Several popular cultivars of this species, which come in a range of colors, are grown as ornamental plants; these cultivars include 'Blue Butterfly', 'Summer Morning', 'Blue Mirror', and 'Summer Stars'. Like many other larkspurs, Delphinium grandiflorum is poisonous. Compared to the more familiar, tall Delphinium elatum, this species is much shorter and more compact, and it bears dispersed flowers rather than single spikes. It is a short-lived perennial, and is often recommended to be grown as if it were an annual, because it is unpredictable whether it will return to grow the next season. This species readily produces seed pods that allow it to reseed on its own, though allowing it to set seed speeds up the end of its flowering period. Delphinium grandiflorum is commonly said to have the most intense blue flowers of any species in the Delphinium genus, but this intensity depends on the specific variety, individual plant, freshness of the blossom, and growing conditions. In bright sunlight, the intense blue pigment of its flowers can make them appear to glow or look fluorescent. Flower colors available for this species include deep blue, medium blue, pale blue, white, and light pale pink. No lavender varieties of this species exist, unlike what is seen in rocket larkspur (Delphinium ajacis, also classified as Consolida) and D. elatum. Unlike these two other species, D. grandiflorum is typically purchased as nursery-grown plants by gardeners, rather than grown from purchased seed. The only exceptions are when gardeners already own plants and collect their seed, or let the plants reseed on their own. Rocket larkspur seed is far less expensive, and seed for spike-type delphiniums is more widely available for purchase than seed for D. grandiflorum. Nursery-grown D. grandiflorum plants are widely available in the United States, and can be found at stores including Walmart and Lowe's. Both dwarf and standard height varieties are available; even the standard height varieties of D. grandiflorum are short when compared to cultivated spike-type delphiniums.
