Aquilegia oxysepala

Oriental columbine, granny's bonnet

Eventual height & spread

Aquilegia oxysepala

Oriental columbine, granny's bonnet

  • approx 30 seeds
  • £3.99
  • available to order from autumn
Delivery options
  • Seed Packets (only) £2.99
  • Position: full sun or partial shade
  • Soil: fertile, moist, well-drained soil
  • Rate of growth: average to fast
  • Hardiness: fully hardy


A contrasting wild columbine with nodding maroon-red skirted and primrose-yellow centred flowers originating from Mount Konsai in Japan. A hardy, upright, and clump-forming perennial, Aquilegia oxysepala is well suited to colder conditions where its finely divided green leaves and slender, upright stems will reliably herald warmer summer weather to come.


  • Garden care:
    Plant Aquilegia in sun or partial shade in moist but well-drained soil. It's tolerant of a range of soil types and will often self-seed if happy, creating natural-looking drifts.

    Remove faded flower stems to tidy the plant or leave them to self-seed.

    Lift and divide large clumps in early spring and apply a generous 5–7cm (2–3in) mulch of well-rotted manure or garden compost around the plant. Divided specimens may take some time to establish since they don't like having their roots disturbed.


  • Sowing instructions:
    In autumn, surface-sow on moist compost in small pots or seed trays and keep them in a greenhouse or cold frame at 15 to 20°C. Germination can be slow (up to 3 months) but seedlings should be thinned out as they grow on and over-wintered under glass before planting out after hardening off in spring.

    Alternatively, spring sowing can be undertaken as before, often without the need for heat.


  • Sow: March to June or September to October


  • Flowering: May to June
  • Goes well with