Pulsatilla vulgaris

Sizes available: 2 quart

Basics: zones 5-7, 9-12" x 18", full sun to high, light part shade, blooms early to mid spring, a violet-reddish bell-shaped flower. foliage is reminiscent of a small fern frond covered in fine silvery hairs, wants very well drained rocky soil and does not want winter wet. May want alkaline soil, but don't fuss too much about this unless you see problems getting it going.

Synonym: Anemone pulsatilla

Common names: Pasque Flower

Family: Ranunculaceae

Origin/distribution: Europe, southwest Asia

Habitat: grassland (alkaline), it also grows in sparsely wooded coniferous areas on sunny slopes, again, with calcareous soil

More: Nice addition to your sunny rock garden or border edge with good drainage. The foliage will go dormant in summer, but the seedhead will persist. The mythology around this plant is interesting. It seems to pop up on old landscape features in Britain such as boundaries and barrows - places where ancient battles were fought against Romans or Vikings. P. vulgaris has received an An Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society. 

Nursery: Van Berkum

Image credits: Jelitto Staudensamen GmbH;  illustration from Wikimedia Commons