balloon flowers - GARDENING
Balloon flowers (Platycodon grandiflorus) are easy perennials with flowers that emerge from puffy buds. Learn to grow this summer bloomer with this guide. What Are Balloon Flowers?
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Although P. grandiflorus is not a native blue flower, its hardy, disease-resistant nature and vibrant perennial blossoms have made it a jewel of American gardens. Balloon flowers are great as cut flowers, and they're fun to pop! Balloon flowers require full sun for the most blooms but can tolerate partial shade.
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These plants thrive in organically rich, loamy, well-draining soil with a pH between 5.5 and 7.5. Balloon flowers may not float, but their whimsical buds puff up like little balloons before bursting into star-shaped blossoms in shades of blue, pink, or white. Native to East Asia and beloved in cottage and rock gardens alike, these low-maintenance perennials bring color and cheer all summer long. Balloon flowers, botanically known as Platycodon grandiflorus, are among the most distinctive flowering perennials. The plants earn their name from the unique buds, which swell into a balloon shape before opening into star-shaped blooms.
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How to Plant, Grow, and Care For Balloon Flowers - Epic Gardening Widely popular among gardeners, Platycodon grandiflorus (Balloon Flower) is a compact herbaceous perennial with bell-shaped, flaring, violet-blue flowers, up to 2-3 in. across (5-7 cm), adorned with 5 broad, pointed lobes that form a star shape. Balloon flowers make great neighbors to other plants because they don't spread and only need dividing about once a decade. In sun, I like to flank them with yellow plume celosia or orange Cosmos sulphureus. Guide to growing and caring for balloon flowers in your garden. Learn about size, bloom times, colors, and the benefits of the flower, including companion planting.
Balloon flowers are native to China, Japan, Korea and Siberia, where for centuries they've been used for culinary and medicinal purposes. You can find dried balloon roots in the produce aisle at Asian grocery stores. But most people grow balloon flowers as an ornamental.