06 Late Spring - Columbine

This columbine was one of the first flowers we planted in the spring, 2006. It did very well and is still in the garden almost two years later.

I let several of its flowers go to seed; and once the seed pods were dry and brittle, I carefully collected the seeds and put them in an envelope.

I still have some of these seeds.

In the late fall, 2007, I spread them over a side garden at the front of the house. We call this garden the "fride" garden, as in "FRont sIDE."

Columbine seeds take weeks - if not, a month - to germinate. Then, tiny leaves unfurl along a single purple stem. It stays like this for quite some time, before growing rapidly.

I'm told columbines need cool or cold weather to germinate, but mine do well throughout the year. Maybe, it never gets too hot for them in San Francisco. I'm happy to report the ravenous birds leave the seedlings and larger plants alone, though the slugs and snails enjoy them too much.