A beautiful and popular feature of the countryside, the Flanders Poppy, or Corn Poppy (Papaver rhoeas), is an annual wildflower known for its stunning, vibrant red flowers. They stand atop long, hairy stems, accompanied by pinnately lobed, cut or toothed, and hairy leaves. These delicate flowers showcase four rounded, overlapping, papery petals, typically in brilliant scarlet-red shades but also in pink or white, often displaying a dark basal blotch. Blooming from late spring to early summer, the flowers are followed by ornamental seedpods, extending the season of interest for this captivating plant.

A favorite of many gardeners, multiple award-winner Allium hollandicum 'Purple Sensation' is a striking ornamental onion with perfectly round flowerheads, 3 in. wide (8 cm), packed with dozens of small, star-shaped, rich violet-lilac flowers. They are borne atop sturdy stalks, which arise from a group of 6 to 8 handsome, blue-green leaves. Blooming in late spring to early summer, this spectacular Allium enjoys long-lasting blooms and makes outstanding cut flowers that will last for 2 weeks.

Native to Europe, Aquilegia Vulgaris, known as Columbine has escaped gardens and naturalized in parts of North America. Bushy and clump-forming, this attractive perennial has delicate blossoms in shades of blue, violet, pink, or white with spreading sepals and short-hooked spurs. They rise with natural grace in a mound of thin, leafy stems in late spring to early summer. Leaves are gray-green, rounded, and divided into lobed leaflets. A wide array of cultivars is available in commerce, featuring flowers that are single or double, short-spurred or spurless, in a variety of colors ranging from blue to violet to white to pink to red. They all are elegant additions to the shade garden!