Bellflowers: all about planting & care

These beautiful bell flowers herald the arrival of summer. Here, you will learn everything you need to know about planting and caring for bellflowers in the garden.

The graceful bellflower (Campanula) seems to have sprung straight out of a fairy tale. You too can be enchanted by their beautiful delicate flowers and complement your garden with their summer freshness.

Blue flowers have always been fascinating. In the time of romanticism, they were the symbol of love, longing and eternity. Many poems have been written about them. Bell flowers also fit these ideas, because they shine in the most diverse shades of blue.

Bellflowers: characteristics and origin

Bellflower is a very large genus of plant. They are found worldwide, but more so in the northern hemisphere. As a constant companion, they can be found on the mountain meadows of the Alps as well as on colourful flower fields or at the edge of the forest. And because they are so delicate and beautiful, they have also conquered our gardens for over two hundred years. Most often, bell flowers are perennial. Their bell-shaped flowers shine in the most beautiful shades between white and purple. Be it pure white, vibrant blue, deep purple, soft pink or spring lilac – bellflowers have it all.

Flowering time

Bellflower blooms throughout the summer, depending on the species and variety, and their beautiful colourful flowers appear between May and August. Thus, the flowering time extends over a long period. This is perfect for pollinators such as bees, hoverflies and native butterflies.

Bellflower species and varieties

Bellflower is a very diverse genus of plants. Over 300 species of bellflower can be found worldwide. At the same time, that does not even include all the varieties that have since been bred.

Peach-leaved bellflower

The peach-leaved bellflower (Campanula persicifolia) may be familiar to you from wild meadows and forest edges. The ‘Grandiflora Coreolea’ variety, which can grow to a height of up to 90 cm, is pretty in its beautiful blue-violet colour. On the other hand, the dwarf variety ‘Alba’ of the subspecies nitida is quite different. It shines in white and is even perfectly suitable for rock gardens.

Winter hardy bellflower species

Many species of bellflowers are readily hardy. These include the peach-leaved bellflower and tangle bellflower (Campanula glomerata).

Canterbury bells

Canterbury bells (Campanula medium) are not native to Europe, but still perfectly suitable for your garden. Its bulbous and delicate flowers have the perfect bell shape. Two beautiful varieties are the ‘Champion pink’ and the ‘White double’.

Other bellflower varieties

The bellflower family (Campanulaceae) includes not only genera that look similar to bellflowers. This family also has some surprises to offer, be it the Hawaiian palm (Brighamia insignis) or the great lobelia (Lobelia rhynchopetalum) from Ethiopia.

Planting bellflowers

The right place for a bellflower is definitely a sunny one. Most species are most comfortable in full sun, but they also like light shade. The soil should be slightly moist and very well drained. However, this plant and its eye-catching flowers do not like wet feet at all. A humus-rich substrate with a neutral or slightly alkaline pH is the optimal substrate for your bellflower.

Planting bellflowers in the garden

Depending on whether you are looking for a towering, small and compact, or a creeping bellflower species, the perfect planting place may be different. There are a range of possibilities: a rock garden, interspersed in a wild meadow, under sparse deciduous shrubs, along a fence or in the middle of a perennial bed. It is important that the bellflower is in a sunny or at most lightly shaded place with humus-rich soil.

To plant the bellflower, first dig a hole twice the size of the root ball. Then add enough of the excavated and loosened soil back into the hole so that the top of the root ball is level with the soil surface when you put it in. Then add the rest of the soil around the planting ball. It is best to work a slow-release fertiliser such as our Plantura Flower Food into the soil too. This will give your bellflower the best possible start and provide it with all the essential nutrients it needs from the very beginning.

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Now lightly press the plant down and water it well. Bellflowers usually multiply by themselves in the right location. Not that they will overgrow everything, but they maintain themselves without intervention. This occurs firstly by seed, and secondly by runners. You can also intentionally propagate the plant by sowing seeds or by division.

The ideal environment for bellflowers, summary:

• Sunny or slightly shaded
• Slight humus to humus-rich substrate
• Slightly alkaline or neutral soil
• Good water permeability, no waterlogging
• Moist soil, only moderately moist in rock gardens

Bellflowers in pots for balcony and terrace

In the past, bellflowers were especially popular in pots. Of course, this is still possible today. The advantage is that the plant can thus be moved very easily. For planting, use commercially bought garden soil. This should be peat-free, as peat is slightly acidic and bellflowers prefer neutral, if not slightly alkaline, pH levels. We recommend our peat-free Plantura Organic Flower Compost, which will provide your plants with optimal nutrition for lush blooms. If you mix some sand into the soil, you can increase the water permeability. You can also place a clay shard on the bottom of the pot for optimal water drainage. Also, be sure to use a pot with a drainage hole.

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Bellflowers as houseplants

Bellflowers can even be kept as indoor plants. The star bellflower (Campanula isophylla) is especially suitable for this purpose. This small-growing species from northern Italy also blooms indoors in its full glory in summer. Its requirements are similar to those of other bellflowers. It loves humus-rich, permeable substrate, slightly moist soil and plenty of light. Direct sunlight is not quite its cup of tea, though, so you’d better not place it in an exposed location. The plant, which blooms in different shades of blue or white, is also very good in indoor hanging pots.

Caring for bellflowers

Bellflower is not demanding. Simply work some compost, (horse) manure or our Plantura Organic Flower Food with slow-release effect into the soil in spring to start growth. In dry summers, make sure that the plant gets moisture from time to time. Potted plants should be watered especially regularly. Apart from that, bell flowers do not require further care – except, perhaps, protection against frost in winter, depending on the species.

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• Perfect for flowering plants in the garden & on the balcony
• For healthier plants with beautiful & long-lasting blossoms
• Long-lasting fertiliser that is free from animal products - child & pet friendly

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Tip: To extend flowering time, you can remove withered flowerheads at the base from the root ball. However, it is better to always let a few plants go to seed. Thus, the bell flowers can naturally reproduce and continue growing in your garden.

Overwintering

Most bellflowers are perennial and hardy without problems. These species sprout afresh in spring. However, some biennial species, such as Canterbury bells, are only biennials and are not quite as hardy. Therefore, cover them with coniferous branches in winter, to protect against frost. The few annual species of bellflower do not survive the winter.

Are bellflowers poisonous?

With over 300 species, bellflowers are a very extensive genus. In general, there is disagreement about whether some of these species are poisonous. What is certain, however, is that they are not lethal to humans. The occurrence of poisoning is also very unlikely. On the contrary, the flowers of the plants are even edible. It may be different for some pets. Therefore, it is not advisable to deliberately feed bellflowers to animals.