Small flower fills a garden with the look of balloons

Dwarf balloon flower

Every garden looks like a party when filled with balloons. A small flower blows up buds that look like balloons, which then open to star-shaped violet-blue flowers.

Botanical name: Platycodon grandiflorus "Sentimental Blue"

Why you want it: This little charmer makes a dandy border along a walkway or tucked in a container garden. It requires little maintenance, is very drought tolerant and blooms all summer.

Flowers: Puffy orbs that resemble hot-air balloons unfurl into bell-shaped flowers with pointed petals, 2 to 3 inches wide. Blooms the color of the summer sky at sunset start in May and continue through September.

Foliage: Dull green, oval leaves have pointed tips and serrated edges.

Size: Plants grow 8 to 10 inches tall and 12 to 15 inches wide.

Care: Although balloon flowers tolerate full sun and are drought tolerant, plants look best with afternoon shade and regular water in the summer. Cut off old flowers and fertilize once a month to keep the plant blooming.

Hardiness: This is a tough little plant, unfazed by extremes of heat or cold. Plants die back to the roots after the first hard freeze and are slow to emerge from dormancy in the spring. Don’t give up on them and dig up the roots. They will eventually sprout back in late spring.

Landscape uses: These flowers display best when planted off the ground in a pot, hanging basket or window box, but they make a nice display in drifts at the front of a bed.

MARY WILHITE OWNS BLUE MOON GARDENS, A GARDEN CENTER NEAR TYLER. VISIT WWW.BLUEMOONGARDENS.COM, OR CONTACT WILHITE AT MWILHITE@EMBARQMAIL.COM.

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