Delphinium cultorum, Pacific series
Family: Ranunculaceae | Origin: Species from Europe and Asia
Visitors who come to garden centers in Israel in March-April have a hard time missing the impressive tall flowering spikes carrying flowers in bright blue, purple and azure colors of the delphinium plants.
In nature, it is rare to find plants with true blue flowers, especially in warm climates, and such plants are in great demand.
Most customers will enjoy the beautiful flowering for a month or two and then replace the plant at the beginning of summer because these are hybrids of northern plants, which do not like the warm regions of the country and suffer greatly in the summer.
In the high mountain region of Israel, on the other hand, and under optimal conditions, these plants do quite well: They can live for several years and bloom with huge and spectacular flowering spikes even several times a year.
The tall Pacific varieties grow as herbaceous perennials from an underground stem, and to cope with the intense cold of the winters of their countries of origin, they completely dry out the above-ground part at the beginning of winter and resprout in spring.
Those bought in spring will return to this growth cycle in the first winter, but small plants, bought in autumn and winter, do not go completely dormant even in the Jerusalem area (unless the winter is very cold) and wait until spring, when they start growing quickly and bloom in their first year.
It is worth considering the height of the blooms and the upright, prominent appearance when placing the potted plants and in the ground consider planting them among shrubs or even behind low shrubs, with strict adherence to the growing conditions.
The blooms are good for picking when the lower flowers open.
With optimal growth, such a plant can live for about 3-5 years and give 2-3 waves of bloom during the warm season with huge spikes a meter or more in height.
:All you have to do is adhere to the following pampering conditions
- Plant in partial shade to partial sun – from 2-3 to 5-6 hours of direct sun with a preference for shade during the hottest hours of the day.
- Place in a large pot or plant out in a soil well-enriched with organic matter and in a place without significant root competition from trees or large shrubs.
- Fertilize well in advance and add fertilizer once or twice during the growing season.
- Water regularly without missing a beat! They like moist soil with good drainage.
- Protect from strong winds (in summer) and carefully tie flowering stems to supports as they develop, as they may collapse due to their height and the weight of the flowers.
- Prune spent flowering stems to encourage new growth later in the season.
It is interesting to know that this group of plants has given its name to delphinidin, which is a known pigment in many plants that gives a blue or reddish-blue color to species of hydrangea, sea buckthorn, grapes, pomegranates and blueberries.
Some of the varieties of the common hydrangea that change the color of the flower from pink to blue depending on the acidity of the soil and the presence of aluminum ions also contain this pigment, and fortunately in Delphinium varieties it is more stable and does not change with changes in the soil.
The name delphinium (dolphin in Greek) was determined because the flower of some of the wild species reminded the Romans and perhaps even the ancient Greeks of the shape of a dolphin.
דורבנית in Hebrew is related to the name of the plants in other languages and refers to the long nectar spur present in many species in the genus. Several smaller species even grow wild in Israel.
All parts of the plant are poisonous if eaten.
לקריאה על הדורבנית רב-שנתית בעברית לחצו כאן
