Here is a new addition to my Georgia Flower Garden this year. Imagine this flower bud turned upside down.....
Okay, I will help your imagination along with the click of a button. Can you see this bud resembling the shape of a Balloon? I like to think of a Hot Air Balloon Ride when viewing them. I had never seen these flowers until Tina showed me some in her yard at Tiger Gardens. I think they are awesome little buds and found some on the cheap this spring.
They are Chinese Bell flowers and thus far, are doing well in my Semi-Formal Flower Garden.
I had them in colors of blue and white. I did not snap a picture of the white blooms but think this raindrop picture might make up for the lack of photo snapping. 
Once the Balloon has burst open, it takes the shape of a star!
They did well when the soggy conditions killed off the roots of the Phlox planted near them at the same time. I hope they continue to do well in my Garden by surviving their first winter.I have enjoyed the BALLOON RIDE, In the Garden...
I received seeds from a fellow blogger over the winter and my Balloon Flowers are doing wonderful too. They are supposed to reseed themselves......we'll see! I need some white ones too, now!!
ReplyDeleteCute post Skeeter! I love this flower!
ReplyDeleteI think this is such a nice flower. Thanks for sharing it with us.
ReplyDeleteSkeeter girl ! hello there : )
ReplyDeleteI have this flower and it can grow large and sturdy .. the balloons can't help but make you smile seeing them .. I wonder if they will ever breed other colours than this blue ? I haven't seen any but this type .. oh well, it still makes me smile !
Joy : )
Beautiful flower. I like the blue & I think blue looks good in the garden.
ReplyDeleteI will have to check out this one for my garden.
I hope all will have a lovely day.
That is the most beautiful shade of blue Skeeter. It reminds me of Texas Blue Bells.
ReplyDeleteHello~~I have the blue balloon flower and have for about 15 years. I've moved it twice. You'll have this beauty for years Skeeter! gail
ReplyDeleteVery nice! I've never planted one but thought about it a couple times!
ReplyDeleteI've planted this, but it died not long after. I just love the pillowy buds and the flowers too. I should buy this one again.
ReplyDeleteHa, ha, Skeeter, when I saw the title I thought you had gone up in a hot air balloon:) These little flowers are beauties. I've never planted them, but I do like the way the bud opens up; probably as close to a balloon ride as I'll ever get:)
ReplyDeleteI love balloon flowers and they're very easy-care!
ReplyDeleteHi Skeekter. I've had them in the past and love the color. In my garden they emerge really late in the spring and it's easy to forget they are there. They were one of my Grandmother's favorites.
ReplyDeleteMarnie
Morning Skeeter,
ReplyDeleteThese are bright blue! Very nice photos!
Rosey
Good morning all! Skeeter I too thought you took a balloon ride and I was looking forward to one! It is one thing on my bucket list to do. Ah but the balloon flowers are cool too. Mine have slowly died out-all but that one you saw by the arbor. I hope it stays around. I see many have some issues with them while others have them around for years. I hope yours are around for a very long balloon ride...
ReplyDeleteGood Morning everyone! We had a wonderful weekend with the Saints family! Weather was wonderful and I hope everyone enjoyed their long weekend....
ReplyDeleteDarla, I hope these reseed also. If I spot the seeds, I will see if I can spot some white ones and pass them along to you! The white ones did not do as well as the blue one though so I am not holding my breath for any seeds or I may pass out from lack of oxygen...
Dawn, thanks, it is a cute bud and bloom to boot!
Janet, you are most welcome. We here at In the Garden enjoy sharing :-)...
Joy, I do have a white one but it did not bloom nearly as well as the blue ones did for me. I hope they dont get too large or they may have to be moved to another spot but that’s okay as I have a perfect spot for them if need be...
Lola, they are fun flowers for sure so give them a try in your garden. I too like blue in the garden especially with pinks and yellows to surround it as it seems to make all the colors really pop with each other around...
Meadow, they are about the same colors of the Texas Blue Bonnets and Blue Bells as well...
Gail, 15 years? Wow, I hope I have such luck with mine! And if they grow larger and I need to move them, it is nice to know that you moved your plants with no problems. So I will gladly dig away…
Dave, they did great with crummy conditions for me so you must give them a try as I know they would do great for you with nice conditions. The girls will get a kick out of the balloon shape buds....
Lzyjo, I am sorry you lost your balloon flower but do give it a second try! They are such fun flowers from bud to bloom...
Rose, as I was posting on them I was thinking of taking that long desired balloon ride high in the sky. One day I will fulfill that dream as it is on my Bucket List! No bungee jumping for me but a balloon ride, I would do...
Monica, I am glad to hear you say they are easy care! I pretty much plant it and let nature take its course so this will be a great addition to my garden and hopefully, for years to come...
Marnie, how wonderful that I gave you a memory of your grandmother today! I get such smiles when reading blogs of my grandmother’s favorite flowers. They would easily be over looked here in spring with all the azaleas in bloom. I was late getting them into the ground so will be looking for their arrival next spring...
Rosey, thanks, the light was just right and the raindrops priceless for a good picture...
Tina, I was just saying how I have a balloon ride as one To Do's on my Bucket List! lol, I do hope to get up, up and away on a beautiful balloon some day. They were all over Colorado and that is where I should have taken the plunge but we see them here as well. If not, then I too hope these balloon flowers will be around for a long ride for me :-) I was so thrilled to see the ones in your garden and when I spotted them for sale this spring, I jumped on them! Thanks for sharing your balloons with me as you get all the credit for this addition to my garden! :-)
I have always loved these flowers but have never bought one but maybe next year will be the year. I have tried starting them from seed with no luck at all. Hope you girls get your balloon ride but for me, I will keep my feet on the ground!!
ReplyDeleteJean, If I dont get on that balloon soon, I may give up that dream myself. One tends to be less adventurous as they age and “I aint gettin any younger”! hee hee...
ReplyDeleteThanks for helping us see the balloon ride, Skeeter! HA These do grow easily from gathered seed, or just sprinkle them around the mother plant for babies next year! :-)
ReplyDeleteFrances
Really cool! I've read that one variety of balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus 'Komachi') grows nice 2" balloons which don't open. I'm really tempted for one of those.
ReplyDeleteLove those balloon flowers! The purple ones are such a pretty shade.
ReplyDeleteNow, that's what I call garden photography! Superb! Many thanks.
ReplyDeleteGreetings from London.
Like the blooms with the water drops.
ReplyDeleteFrances, Glad you enjoyed the balloon ride with me! LOL, I will be looking for those seeds to scatter as I did and am still enjoying the balloon flowers...
ReplyDeleteGarden Lily, These balloon flowers are new to me as I have only seen them in Tina's gardens before now. I have not heard of the one which does not open but a 2" bud sounds really neat to see!
Teresa, These balloon flowers are really blue but the color is such a deep shade of blue that it seems purple in the pictures. They are neat little flowers...
Cuban, Greetings to you as well over the big ocean! Thanks, I just got lucky with the raindrops and lighting...
Leedra, thanks. I think they look so neat with the raindrops on them. I was lucky to have the camera in my hand that day....
Very pretty, I have a shorter version of this plant. My boys use to love to pop the buds before they opened. :(
ReplyDeleteRaquel, I can see your boys now popping the balloons in the Garden! Did mom have an issue with that game? hee hee...
ReplyDeleteI grow balloon flowers, too. I love the color. This was a fun post, with great photos. I like the header photo, too.
ReplyDelete