Like butterflies in the garden, everybody loves the Columbines.

The nodding flowers are always compared to butterflies, and these garden beauties are as beautiful in a vase as they are in the garden. Your grandmother enjoyed them as much as anyone today, but hers were probably not as colorful as the great hybrids we enjoy. Easterners know the Eastern Red Columbine as a treasured wildflower, but of course, the hybrids offer much larger blooms in a rainbow of colors.

All columbines like rich, well-watered soil, so find a good spot for them and they'll reward you with a fantastic multi-colored display each year in late spring.