Columbine is rightly considered undemanding and easy to care for. But under certain circumstances, such as when grown in pots, in dry times and when disease is present, you cannot avoid caring for the columbine if you want to continue to enjoy it.
How do I care for the columbine properly?
Columbine care is easy: water regularly in the pot, water outdoors when growing and in dry periods. Use compost as fertilizer, fertilize the pot every 2 weeks. Remove spent flowers and avoid flowering when transplanting. Columbines are hardly susceptible to pests and diseases.
Does the columbine need to be watered?
If the columbine is in a pot, it should be watered when the top layer of soil has dried. In the open field, however, a columbine only needs a regular supply of water during the growing phase. This perennial should also be watered in dry times. However, waterlogging should be avoided. Rainwater is best suited for watering as it is lime-free.
Do these plants need fertilizer?
It is not absolutely necessary to fertilize the columbine. If you incorporate compost into the soil when planting, you won't have to worry about fertilizing until next year. A columbine in a pot should be lightly fertilized every 2 weeks during its growing season. Fertilization will be stopped from the end of August.
How to cut the columbine?
Pruning the columbine is also not necessary. However, if you don't want the seed heads to form and the columbine to spread throughout the garden through self-sowing, you should remove the spent flowers. The seeds usually form between July and August.
Pruning can also be carried out in autumn or alternatively in early spring. After their growing season, columbines usually look unsightly as their foliage yellows and dries up. Cut the plants back to just above the ground! Since columbine is poisonous, it is advisable to wear gardening gloves (€9.00 on Amazon) when cutting.
Can columbines tolerate transplanting?
Transplanting or repotting should be done before or after the flowering period. During the flowering period, the columbine can quickly be damaged by such actions. She is busy blooming and a change of location would rob her of additional energy.
What about diseases and pests?
Because columbines are poisonous, they are not very attractive to the majority of pests. Snails in particular prefer to give them a wide berth. However, the following pests like columbines:
- Caterpillars of the frost moth (eat up leaves and buds)
- Mealybugs (form white webs)
- Aquilegia gall midge (eats buds)
Very few columbines are susceptible to disease. Only poor site conditions and especially dry soil can weaken the plants and make them susceptible to disease. Then powdery mildew can appear. You should quickly cut off affected parts and dispose of them (not in the compost) !
Tips & Tricks
During the growth phase of the columbine, it is important to pull out annoying weeds. Otherwise the weeds will overgrow the young columbines. As a result, they lose out and die.
