Bellflowers

This time of year, I'll do pretty much anything to feed the gardening habit. That's why I took on a freelance project that involves charts and analysis of all things...

So, I'm wasting a good bit of time staring out the window and daydreaming about bells...

Not so much the bell curves of these charts and graphs I'm expected to create. More on the order of:

The 300+ members of the lovely Campanula Bellflower family.
If I could squeeze them all into my garden, I'd probably do so.

Like fine art, sometimes flowers are captivating and we don't immediately know why. It might be the soft colors or gentle lines.

Some gardeners say it's the perfection of the Campanula's bell-shaped flowers they find so pleasing.

Campanulas are reliable perennials requiring no special care, just a bright, sunny location and good drainage.

Most are lovely shades of blue and lavender though the white varieties tend to bloom for longer periods of time.

Bellflowers range from very large (4-5 feet,) to very dainty (6 inches, perfect for rock gardens.)

Three growing in my garden:

• Campanula carpatica 'Blue Clips' USDA zones 3-8, blooms: July-September
• Campanula rotundifolia 'Bluebell of Scotland' USDA zones 3-8, blooms: June-September
• Campanula persicifolia Moerheimii, 'Bellflower Moerheimii', USDA zones 4-9, blooms: all summer.
  

As I dilly dally the hours away on this most boring chart-building project, it occurs to me... there's no such thing as a bell curve to life. Ups and downs create the jagged edges that come from successes and failures all along our path. Though... wouldn't it be lovely if life ran that smoothly?