I have grown this plant and although it is unusual looking and pretty,I wouldn't grow it again. I found that the leaves were more abundant than the flowers which were smaller than I had expected.They also tended to be quite floppy.

They do get tall, and tend to flop. But I highly recommend them, and will grow them again. The plant is an oddity overall, but I think the flowers are quite showy, despite being on the smaller side. The colors are fabulous! It tends to self seed abundantly. Where I've personally planted it (full sun) it does great, and it's self sown in shadier spots in the garden, and tends to have more intense color in the shade. I'd read that it was a tender perennial as well, but it didn't behave this way for me. I'd treat it as an annual. Knowing that it tends to flop a bit as it gets tall, I would recommend a support of some sort (ring?) but am completely in love with cerinthe! The purple bells (I think this is what Burpee calls it), which is c. purpurescens, is the most commonly found, and the first one I grew. Since then, I now have c. retorta (has yellow & plum colored bells) and c. minor aurea 'bouquet gold'. The retorta is FABULOUS and I think I like it as much or even more than the purple! The minor aurea hasn't yet bloomed (this one has been REALLY slow going) but according to web images, the flowers on these are almost inconspicuous. No matter. The foliage is cool too! The retorta is tall like the purpurescens, and the minor aurea is short- maybe 4" tall. More of a mounding habit. Hope this helps!

Oh! I didn't mention any companion plants. Well, I'm a container gardener (townhouse), so I mash together whatever I have room for, haphazardly. I pretty much have a tropical-esque cottagy container chaos. My cerinthe (purpurescens and retorta) are in a large whiskey barrel, along with a shredded white brugmansia, black 'queen of the night' tulips, linaria 'velvet red' (toadflax), yellow miniature daffodils, purple freesia, and a sweet potato vine. By sweet potato vine, I literally mean from a sweet potato which sprouted in my produce bin... *lol* Everything's in bloom except the tulips, brug, and sweet potato, and I must say, it looks fabulous! You really can't go wrong with cerinthe!

Amanda 'romando'

A perennial star for me. Reseeds, foliage color, interesting flowers, spreads to cover the space, attracts bees (big time!) are all pluses. Goes with wallflowers, euryops, euphorbia c., bugloss, butterfly weed, dianthus, tulips, small conifers and Panicum ornamental grass. Iris bed just behind.

It has a short season, which is not all bad. It jumps up around now and by mid-June, I tear it all out, leaving just a few pieces in to set & drop seed. Then zinnias go in that space.

Not sure if it likes heat or humidity. I can only go by my experience, which I have detailed. Your results may vary. Me, I love it.

I am very interested in this plant--actually, any Cerinthe, not just Purple Bells. Deep roots, can you tell me what growing conditions you have for this plant? Sun or shade, dry or wet, how cold it gets where you are? As I am in Massachusetts, the growing conditions are so different. I've heard this plant is difficult here and wonder about results. And have you ever heard it called honeywort as the common name?

Hiya G12:
After daylight savings returns, its location is full sun from noon til just before sunset. I water stuff around it. I don't specifically water it because it spreads so much and is so thick, you can't see where to water. It is a plant that conserves whatever water it can get, from rain or dew, simply because it spreads and shades itself. So, aside from any spring rains, I might give it "artifical" rain by shooting water over the area with my spray gun attachment from time to time. We had temps at night in the high twenties last week, but generally we seldom go below freezing during Winter.

I believe this plant is "mediterranean" in origin, so it likes dry, no rain in summer, not too cold....but I'm not positive about my generalizations here. I am sure that it likes conditions in Northern CA however.

Never heard "honeywort", but bees love it, so maybe that's a connection.

Hi Deep roots--I like the nickname you gave me. G12--I sound like a vitamin!! Back to the topic--thanks for the good growing info about Cerinthe. So you have found that bees like it? Wonder about those common names.

I will have to figure something out to reproduce those Mediterranean conditions here. I have family in San Jose--maybe I can sneakily plant some next time I'm out there just to try it out.

Lots of people outside California grow it, too. It is called honeywort, as you mentioned, as well as the most common 'common' name of blue shrimp plant. I could trade you some seeds, if you'd like.
Amanda 'romando'

I see that Select Seeds, a wonderful catalog of heirloom flowers, has a variety of Cerinthe for sale. I think I'll have to try these out this year.

It's an easy re-seeding annual here for me in Columbus, Ohio. The seeds are like little black elephant tusks. I have winter sown some more and have germiation right now outside in the milk jugs.

They grew really well in my southwest facing dry beds out by the street. The colors are very cool and ghostly. Bees really love them and climb up into the flower. Give them a shot! If you don't like them, rip them out.

I live in california, where it is a cool season annual here- germinates in fall, overwinters, then blooms until it gets hot, then it dies. It is related to borage, and like borage, is a prolific reseeder. Here's a picture taken this morning of them, reseeders, all.

{{gwi:2612}}

Thought I 'd have nice purple bells but they are pink --live in Northern VA and it has been in the mid nineties here so wonder if that has anything to do with it?

Have been saving the seeds already for next year--will try them again I guess

I saw these growing in England, so I suppose moist, not so sunny conditions are fine too. I am going to try some this winter/spring.

Anyone growing this in Phoenix? I'm zone 9a, zone 2 cold hardiness. I'm thinking that when I do my fall seed planting that I'll throw some of this down too. In winter I'll bet it could take full sun but at other times of year, our Phoenix blazing sun and heat would be just too intense so I might be better off trying it in both east and west facing locations and see which is better.