Aconitum
Monkshood
First cultivated in the mid-1500s, Aconitum derivatives were used as both a medicine and a poison, and an unwanted husband might have easily met his end while drinking his dear wife’s tonic. Simply medieval! Leaves, stems and roots are poisonous, but the stately Aconitum still deserves a place in our gardens because of the unusual blooms it hoists in abundance on stalwart stems. An excellent cut flower, unique for its large draped sepal, Aconitum loves cool summer nights, moist, but not wet soil and protection from the heat of the day. Perfect in the border or at woodland’s edge, their bold presence makes an engaging companion to Anemone, Helenium and late-blooming Persicaria.
Intense dark indigo-blue hooded blooms densely garnish a unique presentation of lovely large and wide-branching panicles, without the distraction of a dominant central leader. Strong, lean tapered stalks and deeply cut, varnished forest-green foliage bolster a flowery spectacle that tantalizes the floral trade and keeps our attention sparked through late summer with its masterful seed pod-studded stems. Steeped in grandeur since 1898, when legendary plantsman Maurice Prichard first introduced it, this AGM winning Aconitum can be mingled amongst dusky-colored blossoms or the bright yellows of Helianthus ‘Capenoch Star’.
Blooms August-September
Size: 3' 0" – 4' 0" high x 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 3.
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