Aquilegia Express: Columbines
“Sweet columbine, sweet columbine
Beneath the aspen and the pine
You seem a gift from heav’n above”
From a lyric by
Edgar MacMechen, 1922
In late winter, many of us wait in great anticipation of the coming spring. With each new spring, a frenzied burst of wildflowers entices us out into nature for yet another beautiful year of Celebrating Wildflowers.
One of the most exquisite and most beloved wildflowers is the columbine. The magnificent rock-loving columbine brightens our hearts in cool, hidden forest grottos, and lifts our spirit high to alpine meadows and glacial mountain lakes.
The Aquilegia Express is ready to leave the station. Join us as we travel back in time crossing the Bering land bridge, following the development of columbines, interacting with different habitats and pollinators, while viewing their many beautiful colors along the way. Final call!
All aboard!
Natural History
Our journey begins with Aquilegia's ancestors as they cross the Bering land bridge
The Birds and Bees
Pollinators play an important role in columbine development and hybridization
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