The Blue theme.. A color imagined.

[Silas_Sancona]

In nature, some things are certain.. size, shape, form.. while others deceive.  When it comes to colors, one is truly unique as it is rare in nature. What looks " Blue " to our eyes is a deceptive tactic by both animals and plants ( and the sky above ) ..and was actually considered something that didn't exist -as we know it- until more modern times.
https://www.sciencealert.com/humans-didn-t-see-the-colour-blue-until-modern-times-evidence-science

In Nature, there is only one animal, the Obrina Olivewing Butterfly ( Nessaea obrinus )  that produces blue pigment. For other, more familiar critters, the blue we see is the result of the way light is refracted through microscopic prisms/ beads/ ridges contained in feathers or scales.  As stated in this article, https://bestlifeonline.com/blue-in-nature/  the blue color of flowers is dictated by the red pigment Anthocyanin, various pH shifts, mixing of pigments, and how light is reflected. This is why less than 10% of flowering plants produce blue colored flowers.

Despite the rarity, blue is one of the most admired colors in nature, and in the garden.. with lots of on going effort being made to create naturally Blue Roses, Plumeria.. etc..  To many, this is a color of quiet, but powerful strength, loyalty, and trust. It is calming and cool, yet is the hottest visible part of a flame, registering a temperature somewhere between 2,600 and 3,000F ..which is hotter than the white portion, and much hotter than the red, orange or yellow part of a flame.

In the garden, Blue flowered plants can range from Icy, near-white or Turquoise, to the deepest shade of Indigo ..or borderline Purple and keep things from getting " too hot " by balancing out plants that produce warm/ hot colored flowers ..or too simple/ mundane when lots of green is present in the landscape. While various plants also produce foliage which expresses various shades of Blue-Green or Silver,  none produce the same shades seen in flowers ( would be pretty sweet though )

Here, we honor that rarest color in the plant world, and everything  that is cool about it.  ..Feel free to add your own blue flowered plants..

Starting off this lengthy thread with the wild things.. Cuz' that's how i roll

Whether known as " Bluebonnets, or simply by a common name, Lupinus sp. are among the most commonly encountered spring annual across the southwest, CA. and Texas.
Lupinus sparsiflorus, Desert Southwest/ S. California




Lupinus bicolor, Most common in California but seen elsewhere. The " miniature " version of Lupinus douglasii, ..California's " Bluebonnet "





Numerous sp. are also perennial as well, esp. in the Western U.S.
Lupinus albifrons


Another group of Blue flowered  " wildflowers " are the various species of Phacelia.  While there are a few Perennial species, most of the showy species are Annual.

Desert Bluebells, Phacelia campanularia, Primarily Deserts of S. California, but widely planted outside the deserts. As common as the species is -in gardens-  it is listed as " vulnerable " in habitat.






Phacelia distans, Desert Southwest




Phacelia crenulata, Desert Southwest




Similar looking to the Phacelia, are plants in the Genus Gilia. Some perennial, most annual. Majority are blue flowered.  **Several species the genus have been re-assigned to new Genera more recently**

Gilia rigida ** Now Giliastrum rigidulum**  Central/ West Texas and New Mexico.


Gilia capitata, California



Plenty of Blue- flowered Penstemon  across the west / other areas as well.

Penstemon spectabalis, Southern CA.


Penstemon amphorellae, Mexico



A couple ..of many  blue-flowered Salvia ( Sages ) Most present interesting, and frequently fragrant foliage as well.

Salvia mohavensis


Salvia clevelandii


One of a few, showy Annual Sage sp. Salvia columbariae, Chia ( When allowed to grow -and flower- ). Desert Southwest.


Forget the " meh ", overly hybridized and crappy Delphinium, Wild types are better ( and often hardier, where adapted ) Even if they're not the easiest to find/ start from seed.

Delphinium parryi, Desert Southwest, AZ. especially.




Delphinium patens,  Central / S. California.


Onward, towards the tropics....


 

[Silas_Sancona]

The Nightshade family is full of Blue flowered things..

Various Solanum sp:

Solanum hindsianum, Baja and AZ


Solanum Xanti, California ..possibly the Chaparral belt of AZ as well


Solanum elaeagnifolium, Desert Southwest, TX. and CA.




Solanum tridynamum, Sierra Madre, Mexico


Solanum sp.



Headed south, and up, one finds blue flowering Iochroma in the mountains of South America. Some are red -flowered as well. All attract hummingbirds.


A couple of the nicest, Blue flowering Vines, Petrea volubilis.. and Sky Vine ( Thunbergia grandiflora  )






As nice as African Violets are, Streptocarpus, and sister genera in the Gesneriad Family expand on basic Blue tones ( and have bigger flowers )




Among trees,  Jacaranda is king, although there are others with blue flowers..

Jacaranda X " Bonsai Blue "


Jacaranda cross ( jasminoides X )



For Blue colored flowers,  Texas Mtn. Laurel isn't bad either..

" Silver Peso " form of the species..




..Then, of course, there is that special group of small trees from the Caribbean and Mexico...

 

Edited June 30, 2021 by Silas_Sancona
edit

[Silas_Sancona]

.. Guaiacum sp.  AKA, the Lignum Vitae  or " Trees(s) of Life "

Among the 3 i have grown, our regionally native Guaiacum coulteri is the clear stand out in terms of flower size, shape, and overall clarity when it comes to Blue flowering things. Flowers are also scented.. Scent is somewhat like a cross between warm Black Licorice, or fresh out of the dryer clean clothes. Considering where it originates, this is turning out to be pretty adaptable in cultivation, but is still pretty uncommon.











G. sanctum, from S. FL. and the Caribbean would come in second.







Unfortunately, lost my G. officinale, so can't evaluate for flowers. From many pictures, appears the flowers are larger than it's sister sp. G. sanctum.  Regardless, grow it, if you can.. ALL species in the genus are considered  threatened or endangered.


In a world filled with color, Blue is truly nature's greatest gift....

Leucophyllum zygophyllum X " Cimarron "





Blue Ginger, Dichorisandra tyyrsifloia


Tradescantia occidentalis




Ehretia rigida


Moraea sp.


Pacific Coast Iris hybrid..


Psorothamnus spinosus






Vitex agnus -catus


Baby Blue Eyes,  Nemophila menziesii


Enjoy!!

[Peter]

Great thread Nathan!

[Butch]

I enjoyed that very much... Thank you..

Butch

[Fusca]

This thread has given me the blues...that I don't have more blue in my garden!   Here's my lone representative, blue plumbago, for non-palms.  They recovered from the February freeze with a vengeance:

 

[Marie Nock]

A Hawaiian Globba hybrid growing happily in Miami.

Globba 'Blue Hawaii'

[RyManUtah]

I am a little embarrassed to post photos, because i have been lazy with leaving thornless weeds - I actually enjoy the greenery of the clovers. Anyway - here are my ‘blues’ I am trying. 
 

‘Sterile’ Buddleia hybrid. Produces a nice display in late spring, and again early autumn. It doesn’t looks the best in the summer, but I also have no canopy. 
As you can see, the denser foliage provides some shelter for garden arachnids, which I like. Otherwise, I could take or leave it. 

 

Salvia sylvestris ‘May Night’  - this has put on nothing but a magnificent performance for me. Survives on very minimal water, but responds well to more. I give it a little extra this year, and my need to move some cacti because of its explosive growth. 

 

Salvia clevelandii - really enjoy the flowers on this species, and apparently so do hummingbirds. Still trying to configure their watering needs. One looks better than the other, and gets LESS water, but also has weeds around it.  It’s been in place longer. 

 

Both of these plants were actually sold to me Salvia officinalis - which clearly is not the case. I like the creeping nature of the second specimen - reminds me of rosemary. Thoughts? 

(second)

 

 

Lavandula canariensis -doesn’t perform as well as advertised. Could be a soil issue, however. 

 

Tulbaghia violacea - handles the heat exceedingly well, if regularly watered. Been experimenting with this species in cuisine as well.

Fin.  
 

[Silas_Sancona]

@RyManUtah

Your weeds are better than the stinkin', un- stoppable  i keep trying to contain, haha.  If you're planning on putting down deco. gravel once you get the beds done, that will help discourage the Spurge.. or make it easier to pull.


Thinking the 1st of the " Mystery Salvia sp. " could be some form of Salvia farinacea, ..looks really close to it anyway.  Not sure on the second ..though it looks awfully familiar..

You tried either Salvia mohavensis or S. dorrii yet?  Would think either would thrive up there.  Also, if you like Cleveland Sage, there's an outstanding cross called " Celestial Blue ",  and a 3 way cross between it and the two " Desert " Sages mentioned before worth looking for.

[RyManUtah]

1 hour ago, Silas_Sancona said:

You tried either Salvia mohavensis or S. dorrii yet?

Excellent suggestions, thank you! S. dorrii looks like a fun grow. looking at your suggestions, I think S. farinacea, or a hybrid thereof, may be the ticket.  
I’ve really enjoyed the Cleveland. It has stunning flowers and great form to my eye. I will definitely keep my eye out for hybrids. 

I want to start exploring some red hybrids as well (ex. S. microphylla x ‘whatever’ ). 

 

[Silas_Sancona]

6 hours ago, RyManUtah said:

Excellent suggestions, thank you! S. dorrii looks like a fun grow. looking at your suggestions, I think S. farinacea, or a hybrid thereof, may be the ticket.  
I’ve really enjoyed the Cleveland. It has stunning flowers and great form to my eye. I will definitely keep my eye out for hybrids. 

I want to start exploring some red hybrids as well (ex. S. microphylla x ‘whatever’ ). 

 

Some nice crosses involving S. microphylla that would be trial worthy there for sure. Wouldn't be surprised if the species ( and/ or Greggii / it's cultivars ) survived most winters there, esp. if you sited carefully/ sheltered the roots w/ mulch thru the worst cold spells. 

[RyManUtah]

9 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Some nice crosses involving S. microphylla that would be trial worthy there for sure. Wouldn't be surprised if the species ( and/ or Greggii / it's cultivars ) survived most winters there, esp. if you sited carefully/ sheltered the roots w/ mulch thru the worst cold spells. 

Good to know. I picked up a ‘pink’ Greggii in Nevada. It has been doing really well. 
 

18 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

If you're planning on putting down deco. gravel once you get the beds done, that will help discourage the Spurge.. or make it easier to pull

I got distracted talking about the Cleveland and forgot to respond to this.  My plan, once I get everything shaped / top dressed - is to put down a base layer of denaturalized granite. I will had decorate rocks stop this layer where I want them., and not in walkways. Thoughts?  

[Silas_Sancona]

7 minutes ago, RyManUtah said:

Good to know. I picked up a ‘pink’ Greggii in Nevada. It has been doing really well. 
 

I got distracted talking about the Cleveland and forgot to respond to this.  My plan, once I get everything shaped / top dressed - is to put down a base layer of denaturalized granite. I will had decorate rocks stop this layer where I want them., and not in walkways. Thoughts?  

You could for sure..  My only caution is the granite could work its way through the stone, depending on what sized rock you top the granite with of course. I honestly like the idea of having some of the granite.. or whatever smaller rock you might use as a base, sort of mixed between larger rock in spots...   Hopefully you don't/ won't have issues w/ neighborhood cats ( wrecked a few areas where i laid rock out front )

Granite itself has been fantastic where i used it for paths ( really more of an open, natural patio-type setting where a rotted out deck used to be. ) out back... though there are a few spots where i could have laid it a little deeper.  Easy to rake through to get out duff that falls from the Mesquite, other stuff that blows into the yards, any weeds that pop up out front.  When the Annual stuff dies back in late spring ( or fall < the Kallstroemia < AZ Summer Poppies > ) i just run a " Loop/ Hula Hoe " type thing through the rock to knock out the weeds, then rake out / run the blower over.  A little tougher where the granite meets the larger stone out front though.

Sending you a PM regarding a great place to check out for all sorts of Salvia sp. / vars.

[Tracy]

Two of my favorite blue flowers that I'm growing, Puya alpestris aka the Saphire Tower bromeiliad from the Andes, and a Cleisocentron gokusingii (merillianum) orchid.

[Silas_Sancona]

18 hours ago, Tracy said:

Two of my favorite blue flowers that I'm growing, Puya alpestris aka the Saphire Tower bromeiliad from the Andes, and a Cleisocentron gokusingii (merillianum) orchid.

A couple other " Blue things " from both groups of plants:

Puya coerulea var. violacea.. My personal favorite of the big Puyas.




Can't remember which.. either P. berteroniana or chilensis.  Included it here because while Blue is eye catching enough.. Green flowered things are definitely attention - getting


A classic, Blue member of the Orchid fam. Vanda coerulea




Some others, in other families:

2 of many Blue flowered members of the Asteraceae

Hybrid Pericallis ( **formally Cinerarla )


One of several closely related " Tansy " Aster sp. ( Genus Dieteria, Machaeranthera, Psilactis, and Rayjacksonia )


One of a few Blue flowered Waterlilies. All of which are considered Tropical. No blue flowered native sp. in the " hardy " Waterlily group. There are a few breeders working toward violet and blue flowered crosses between the two groups though.



Other, Blue flowered Lamiaceae, -beyond Salvia- Teucrium sp., Germander.


Hibiscus sinensis hybrid where the influence of a blue/ violet flowered parent is present. Numerous other " blue flowered " hybrids/ species/ related genera in the overall family out there as well.

[Swolte]

Great posts I read with much interest. The bluest one I have are the dwarf plumbago I picked up from Lowes many years ago (tough plant too, surviving all my neglect). Ceratostigma plumbaginoides.

[Tracy]

Not to limit it to flowers, I like to mix in a little blue foliage too.

[Silas_Sancona]

22 minutes ago, Tracy said:

Not to limit it to flowers, I like to mix in a little blue foliage too.

Nice, but yes, in this case we're talking blue colored flowers..  Plants w/ " blue " colored foliage would be it's own thread..

[Tracy]

1 minute ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Nice, but yes, in this case we're talking blue colored flowers..  Plants w/ " blue " colored foliage would be it's own thread..

We will be looking forward to you starting that thread Nathan.  I wish that more of my blue flowering Puya's would finally bloom so I could post their pics, but I'm still waiting on some  to bloom the first time a decade after acquiring them.

[Palmensammler]

On 7/3/2021 at 10:34 PM, RyManUtah said:

Fin.  
 

I love this picture because of the yellow flowering Hesperaloe. They look fantastic.

Thanks for showing

Eckhard

[Cindy Adair]

Absolutely the best collection of photos of blue flowers I have ever seen!

Thanks!

[Tracy]

I forgot about a bromeliad I'm growing that has blue flowers.... Quesnelia seideliana.  A beautiful shade of what we used to call "baby blue".  I'm not sure what this color is called these days.

[Tracy]

On 7/7/2021 at 5:21 PM, Tracy said:

Cleisocentron gokusingii (merillianum) orchid

Another one in bloom this August.  This species seems to be on that can bloom at any time of the year.  Despite the flower's small size, this has to be one of my favorite orchids right now with these unusual blue flowers.

[Gonzer]

15 hours ago, Tracy said:

Another one in bloom this August.  This species seems to be on that can bloom at any time of the year.  Despite the flower's small size, this has to be one of my favorite orchids right now with these unusual blue flowers.

That's a wowzer!!!

[Xenon]

Salvia sinaloensis 

Rotheca myricoides 

[Silas_Sancona]

AZ/ N.W. Mexico native Jacquemontia pringlei, one of the few species in an otherwise blue flowered Genus that can produce white, or, in this case, a nice white washed blue color.. 


Another sp. i'd like to get my hands on, Jacquemontia eastwoodii from Baja Sur produces bright blue flowers, like most other sp. 

Because of where it originates, would bet it is extremely drought tolerant, much like some other vines occasionally offered for sale that originate in the same region of Baja.  Appears, at least in some pictures here: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/277801-Jacquemontia-eastwoodiana   to produce silvery- green foliage as well.