do campanula come back every year

Do Campanula Come Back Every Year? A Guide to Getting Bellflowers to Return

If you love having cheerful bellflowers gracing your garden, you may wonder do campanula come back every year? The good news is that with proper care, most campanula varieties will return reliably for many years of beauty In this article, we’ll discuss how to get these cottage garden favorites to come back summer after summer.

What Are Campanulas?

Campanulas are a diverse group of plants that include both creeping species that grow along the ground as well as towering varieties that can reach up to 5 feet tall. What they all have in common are pretty bell-shaped flowers, usually in hues of blue, purple, white or pink The blooms have an open, cup-like shape resembling bells, hence their common name bellflowers.

Most campanulas are herbaceous perennials, meaning the plants die back to the ground in winter then resprout the following spring. However, some species are short-lived perennials that may only live for 2-3 years. There are also a few annual and biennial campanulas.

In the garden, you’ve likely seen low-growing, spreading campanulas like Campanula poscharskyana or Campanula portenschlagiana thriving in the small crevices between stones or pavers. Their petite size and trailing stems make them perfect choices for rock gardens and stone walls. Meanwhile, larger varieties like peachleaf bellflower and clustered bellflower thrive in flower beds and cottage gardens.

Getting Campanulas to Come Back Year After Year

With attentive care, most campanula varieties will return reliably each year. Here are some tips for getting bellflowers to come back vigorously:

• Choose perennial campanula species or cultivars rather than biennials or annuals that require replanting each year. Some great perennial choices are Carpathian harebell, Serbian bellflower, and bellflower “Champion” series.

• Provide full sun for sun-loving varieties like peachleaf bellflower. Give partial shade for woodland types like giant bellflower.

• Amend soil with compost to ensure excellent drainage. Wet winter soils cause root rot.

• Water 1-2 inches per week for the first year to help new plants establish deep roots. Mature plants need consistent water when rainfall is scarce.

• Apply 2-3 inches of mulch around plants in fall to insulate roots from temperature swings. Replenish as needed.

• Prune plants lightly after flowering by shearing back 1/3 to 1/2 of the height. This promotes compact growth.

• Divide overcrowded clumps every 3-4 years to rejuvenate the plants. Replant the healthiest sections, discarding old centers.

• Watch for common pests like slugs, snails and aphids. Control minor infestations by hand removal.

• Give very winter hardy varieties extra winter insulation with evergreen boughs if your climate experiences hard freezes.

By providing campanulas with their preferred growing conditions and practicing attentive care, you can count on these easy-to-grow perennials coming back year after year. With lush growth and masses of delicate bell-shaped blooms, they add romance and cottage garden charm wherever they grow.

Troubleshooting Campanulas That Don’t Return

Sometimes campanulas underperform or die out during winter. Potential causes include:

• Excess winter moisture leading to root rot. Improve drainage before replanting.

• Frost damage if planted too early in spring before threat of frost has passed. Don’t rush spring planting.

• Insufficient water during the first year fails to establish deep roots.

• Failure to mulch around plants results in frost heaving that disturbs roots.

• Rapid growth when fertilized too early in spring, leaving tender growth susceptible to disease.

• Overcrowding leads to weak, floppy plants. Divide regularly.

• Disease issues like botrytis, crown rot or powdery mildew exacerbated by wet conditions. Allow for airflow.

• Lack of sun causes poor growth in full sun varieties like peachleaf bellflower. Move to a sunnier spot.

By understanding and avoiding these potential pitfalls, you can have gorgeous, thriving campanulas that come back faithfully each season.

Best Campanula Varieties for Perennial Gardens

If you’re looking for campanulas to give you maximum return performance in your garden, consider these top-rated varieties:

• Carpathian Bellflower (Campanula carpatica) – A popular alpine campanula that forms a tidy mound covered in purple, white or blue starry flowers in summer. Grows just 4-10 inches tall.

• Bellflower “Champion Series” (Campanula medium) – Large 2-3 inch clusters of violet-blue or white upward facing bells on sturdy 12-15 inch stems.

• Serbian Bellflower (Campanula poscharskyana) – A trailing campanula that cascades beautifully in rock gardens, walls and containers with its blue starry blooms. Reaches just 4-6 inches tall.

• Peachleaf Bellflower (Campanula persicifolia) – An old-fashioned favorite with big nodding bells up to 2 inches wide in shades of blue, white or purple on thin 18-24 inch stems.

• Dalmatian Bellflower (Campanula portenschlagiana) – Vigorous low-growing spreader that blooms prolifically with purple flowers. Grows just 3-6 inches tall but spreads 18-24 inches wide.

• Clustered Bellflower (Campanula glomerata) – Large clustered blooms packed with dozens of small violet-blue flowers appear in early to mid-summer atop sturdy 20 inch stems.

More Tips for Growing Campanulas

Beyond getting campanulas to come back reliably, here are some additional tips for growing these charismatic perennials:

• Start seeds indoors 6-8 weeks before last spring frost for stronger first year plants. Move outdoors after hardening off.

• Take stem tip cuttings in summer to easily propagate additional plants. Dip in rooting hormone and plant in potting mix.

• Allow desired varieties to self-seed for new free plants each year. Thin out excess seedlings.

• Interplant campanulas with coral bells, catmint, lavender, yarrow and other sun-loving perennials in borders or cottage gardens.

• Use the low trailing species in stone walls, rock gardens, as a lawn alternative or even cascading from containers.

• Deadhead spent blooms to encourage more flowers. But leave final blooms to go to seed.

• Cut back taller types by 1/3 to 1/2 after flowering finishes to keep plants tidy.

With proper site selection and attentive care, campanulas will reward you with years of delicate beauty in the garden. Give them what they need, and you’ll have cheerful bellflowers coming back to charm you every summer.