How to grow autumn gentians | House & Garden

24.09.2024 - 04:13 / houseandgarden.co.uk / Hazel Sillver

Chinese Gentian (Gentiana sino-ornata)

When most people think of gentians, they envision the bright-blue flowers that bloom in the Alps during spring. But there is another gang of gentians, which looks similar, but hails from Asia and flowers now, in autumn. The best garden forms of these autumn gentians are Gentiana sino-ornata and its hybrids. A low-growing semi-evergreen perennial from Tibet and China, G. sino-ornata produces 6-centimetre long electric-blue trumpets from September to November, and it has parented many of the good autumn-flowering varieties, which range in colour from pale baby blue to rich, glossy indigo.

Plant collectors of the early 20th century became quite obsessed with Asiatic gentians, which isn't surprising, since the piercing-blue flowers make them stick out, jewel-like, on the scrubby slopes and pastures of the Himalayas. Scottish botanist George Forrest found Gentiana sino-ornata in Yunnan, and, when it bloomed for the first time in Britain – in the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh – people flocked to see it. Enjoy these blue beauties in your own garden by giving them the moist, free-draining conditions they love, in which they are very well behaved.

There is a wide range of hybrids, which are often the offspring of the showy Chinese gentian (Gentiana sino-ornata), in every shade of blue. Growing a range of blue hues gives a great effect en masse. 'Strathmore' is a pale sky-blue form; 'Blauer Kobold', 'Braemar', and 'The Caley' are mid-blue shades of ultramarine; while 'Faszination' and 'Sensation' are deep lapis blue.

Alpine Gentian (Gentiana nivalis) flowering in Santa Maria Valley

Choose a sunny site that has retentive, well-drained soil. Fork in leafmould or compost to boost retention and