Gentians are a group of small-growing perennials, renowned both for their medicinal properties and cobalt blue flowers. Most gentians will not normally tolerate our hot humid summers here in North Carolina, however, we are pleased to offer some gentians which we have found to be good garden specimens in a wide range of growing conditions.
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Gentians prefer a sunny site with consistent moisture, but will not tolerate being waterlogged. In the right spot, Gentians will provide you with beautiful blue, butterfly-attracting flowers in late summer or fall. Most gentians have bell-shaped blooms that are popular with hummingbirds. Gardeners can combine gentians with other moisture-loving plants such as carex, bletilla, sabatia and iris to create beautiful color and texture combinations. Gentians are perfect for rock gardens, alpine beds, containers or the front of a perennial border. When you are ready to buy gentians for your perennial garden, check out our online offering of gentians for sale below.
Since 1988, Plant Delights Nursery has been the choice of serious gardeners and plant collectors looking for the best and rarest perennial plants. We are pleased to have received the Perennial Plant Association Retail Award in 2011, the American Horticulture Society Commercial Award in 2002, and to have been selected as one of the Best Mail Order Plant Sources - Garden Design Magazine 2010. Welcome to our family of plant lovers!
This splendid native gentian hails from the colder regions of the country...Canada south to Missouri. The 18" slightly lax stems arise from a dormant rosette in spring, clothed in pinky-shaped glossy green leaves. In late September and October, the clumps are topped with hummingbird attracting clusters of blue-lavender flowers resembling a mini southern bottle-tree. Gentiana andrewsii prefers slightly moist alkaline conditions, although we have found it to also grow well in slightly acidic ground while tolerating seasonal droughts. Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
This rarely-offered native NC gentian grows to only 12" tall with short stems covered with whorls of thumbnail sized, rubbery, dark green leaves. In the fall, from October through November, the clump is smothered in clusters of narrowly open, tubular blue flowers...attractive to hummingbirds. Gentiana catesbaei prefers moist to boggy conditions where competition is minimal...we have been thrilled at the ease of culture. Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
This great gentian from high elevations in the Caucasus Mountains has been one of the few gentians to thrive in our hot, humid summers. Gentiana septemfida var. lagodechiana makes an 8" tall x 15" wide semi-sprawling clump of dark green leaves highlighted, in July and August, with open, cobalt-blue, often white-centered flowers that draw hummingbirds. The variety "lagodechiana" hails from Lagodekhi, Republic of Georgia, and is shorter than the typical species. Gentiana septemfida prefers an open, well-drained, but slightly moist site. We really love this plant, but keep it clear of more aggressive neighbors. Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
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