AQUILEGIA. Columbine. Widespread, mostly in north-temperate regions. These are graceful, long-lived perennials for moist spots in the garden. They make compact clumps of seasonal shoots from a branched rootstock. Their usually long-stalked, fern-like leaves, elegant by themselves, form a beautiful foil for branched clusters of large, usually nodding blossoms in spring. Each flower has five colored, usually spreading sepals and five inner petals whose base is drawn out into a nectar-bearing spur. They are fine plants for butterflies and other insects, and the red-flowered ones will draw hummingbirds from far and wide. I have had great fun selecting and hybridizing among the new forms which continually pop up at the nursery; may gardeners find them similarly enchanting. Winter deciduous. Sun or part shade, reasonably well drained soil, constant moisture during active growth. Those listed are hardy to below 0^o, except as noted.

formosa. Western columbine. A Western native with bluish green, finely divided leaves and 2-3' stems of red and yellow flowers. Ours are from exceptionally large flowered stock, originally encountered along the Van Duzen River in northern California. 10^oF or less.