Aquilegia vulgaris var. stellata 'Black Barlow'

granny's bonnet

Eventual height & spread

Aquilegia vulgaris var. stellata 'Black Barlow'

granny's bonnet

  • 9cm pot
  • £9.99
  • available to order from autumn
  • 3 × 9cm pots
  • £23.99 £8.00 each
  • available to order from autumn
  • 6 × 9cm pots
  • £39.99 £6.67 each
  • available to order from autumn
Delivery options
  • Standard £5.99
  • Position: full sun or partial shade
  • Soil: fertile, moist, well-drained soil
  • Rate of growth: average to fast
  • Flowering period: May to June
  • Hardiness: fully hardy


A popular cultivar among garden designers, this lovely granny’s bonnet has beautiful, fully double, spur-less purple-black flowers in late spring above fern-like green leaves. It looks gorgeous with other black flowers and is equally at home in cottage-garden schemes or among grasses.

Aquilegia vulgaris var. stellata 'Black Barlow' thrives best in soil that retains moisture over the summer. It is easy to grow and quite short-lived, but self-seeds freely, though rarely to nuisance level.


  • 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.
  • Goes well with