Mad Love For Dephiniums

Think back to high school. Do you remember having a crush or falling madly in love with someone, but having to live with the realization that that love might never be returned or that the person who was the object of your affection would always be out of reach?

I remember those days all too well and I have to tell you, there are plants that I’ve had similar relationships with. I’ve loved their beauty, grace and even sensuality but in some frustrating cases have never had a fruitful or satisfying relationship. Sometimes it turns to envy. Sometimes frustration and contempt—especially when another gardener has success while I continue to fail.

Such is the case with me and delphiniums. I remember falling in love as I entered the Grand Marquee at the Chelsea Flower Show some 40 years ago; in my first turn around the outer circle of this magnificent tent they absolutely captured my attention. At this point it was both awe and lust as I looked at the collection of Blackmore & Langdon delphiniums. In full bloom with their flowery spikes reaching 6, 7 and even maybe 8 feet tall, they captured my heart and I was in a state of awe. Since then they have broken my horticultural heart, and to some degree I must be a masochist because over and over I try to get that relationship going again, only to succumb to defeat one more time.

But the tall garden delphiniums like Blackmore & Langdon’s, the Pacific Giant hybrids and the New Millenniums are plants to die for or at least lust after. And this year, once again, after a three-year hiatus, I will plant them. Once again with hope beyond hope I will plant the seeds, nurture the seedlings into mature plants and wait a long year to see them in their flowering splendor. Why have I waited three years to plant any? Which ones will I choose? Why will I ultimately fail?First off, a warning. You are going see some public relations this year proclaiming 2016 to be the Year of the Delphinium. Why, I’m not sure, and the choice may have been pretty arbitrary and not based on any new research or newly developed plants. But there are some new ones that I’m dying to try and these may or may not break my heart. Meanwhile, I thought you might like to know a little about my love story before you buy some seeds or order some plants. I hope you do both, but with an open mind and realistic expectations.

When I returned from Chelsea there were dozens and dozens of new plants that I wanted to be able to grow in my wholesale perennial nursery in Southampton. Delphiniums were certainly high on that list and within a few years The Hampton Gardener was offering 15 varieties of delphiniums to garden centers all over Long Island and Westchester. It was one of our most popular crops and always a sellout. Most were sold in 1-gallon pots and in flower, but the clamor was such that some garden centers would want plants, flowers or not.

The plants were all grown from seed that came from Klaus Jelitto in Germany and most were the Pacific Giant hybrids, which had been developed by the California breeder Frank Reinelt. He was able to develop plants that would grow on stems 5 to 7 feet tall, and since they were hand-pollinated seeds they were true to name just about every time you grew them. Galahad was the pure white of the series, with no colored bee (center of the flower). King Arthur was a royal violet with a white bee and Blue Jay was a medium blue with a dark to black bee. Percival was similar to Galahad but it had a dark bee and Black Knight, which I think was the most spectacular, had a dark violet-purple flower and was the darkest color in the series. Summer Skies was a sky blue with a white bee, Astolat a rosy-lilac with a dark bee and Bluebird was a medium blue with a white bee.

Now, you may have noticed that in my descriptions above I referred to the Pacific Giants in the past tense. This is because for many decades the seeds that had been available were not from hand-pollinated plants (which in turn produced the seeds), so the colors have become variable, as has the vigor of the plants. You can still buy the seed and you can still find the plants, but they share only a portion of the true lineage and what was available 30 or 40 years ago.

But for two reasons all is not lost. Yes, we may have lost the pure genetic characteristics of the Pacific Giant strains, but the English company Blackmore & Langdon still produces an excellent strain of tall English delphiniums and you can buy their seed directly from them or, for the first time, you can buy a few of their plants from the White Flower Farm, which now has a relationship with B&L.

There is even better news though. Dowdeswell’s Delphiniums of New Zealand is now probably the world leader in the development of what is known as the English delphinium hybrid or Delphinium elatum, and this is where the Pacific Giant hybrids and the B&Ls all have their roots as well. But the Dowdeswell’s have gone an important step further. Not only do they hand-pollinate most of their offerings, but they have set out to breed delphiniums that tolerate warm and humid conditions just like we have in the Hamptons in the summer. These delphiniums are being sold as the New Millennium delphiniums, and you won’t find them at most garden centers, but you can buy the plants from a number of retail mail order nurseries and you can find some of their seeds for sale online as well. Seeds can also be ordered directly from the nursery in New Zealand, and their website is a gold mine of information, not only about their seeds and plants, but also about all the specifics on growing the plants from seeds to mature flowering specimens, and more.

The bad news though is that the Dowdeswells would like to retire and sell their business. So, if you ever wanted to dig right in, here’s your chance to buy a horticulture business that’s unique and I see they are willing to help with the relocation. You could even move the entire operation right out here and I’d be your first customer or employee. Seriously.

Next week, part two on delphiniums: how to grow them and more on my lovesick relationship with this wonderful plant. Keep growing.