POLEMONIUM 



(From polemonion, the Greek name for Valerian, perhaps named for the philosopher, Polemon) 

 PoUmoniacea 



102. Polemonium caeruleum 



English Names: Jacob's ladder, Greek valerian, Ladder-to-heaven, Charity, 



Makebale. 



NORTH ASIA, EUROPE 



MID-MAY THROUGH JULY 



BELL-SHAPED violet-blue flowers nearly one inch across, borne in 

 compact terminal heads on stout, erect, unbranching, somew^hat leafy 

 stems one to three feet high. Leaves compound, consisting of many 

 small pointed leaflets 

 regularly arranged along 

 the leaf stem, largest and 

 most abundant at the 

 base of the plant, very 

 pretty and persistent. 

 Excellent in clumps for 

 the herbaceous border, 

 though never making very 

 much of a color display. 



A perfectly hardy 

 perennial of easy culture 

 in any deep, rich, loamy 

 soil, in partial shade. Re- 

 quires a considerable 

 amount of moisture. The 

 foliage is easily affected 

 by soil spattered on the 

 leaves by rain. 



Propagate by seed 

 sown in the fall or by 

 division. 



Var. album {P. album) . 

 A white-flowered variety 

 as good as the type. 



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