COLORADO BLUE COLUMBINE



File Size: 143 KB
Location: Chasm Lake trail, Rocky Mountain Nation Park, Colorado
  Aquilegia caerulea  James

Also Called:  Rocky mountain columbine.

Flowering Period:  June, July, August

Family:  Buttercup ( Ranunculaceae )

Height:  24" - 36"

Life Span:  perennial

Leaves:  Compound, biternate, glabrous leaves with lobed and deeply-cleft leaflets.

Flowers:  5 sepals (generally pale-sky blue), 5 petals (generally whitish) with backwardextending, straight and slender spurs to 2 in. Typically upward-facing flowers, 2 to 3 inches across.

Habitat:  Partly shady, moist, well-drained, sandy-loamy, organic rich soil in moderate to montane elevations.

Distribution:  Colorado county distribution map can be found here.

Origin:  Native to Rocky Mountains

Comments:  Aquilegia is the Latin term for eagle; the five flower spurs of this plant resemble eagle talons.

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