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Native columbine variant #871530

Asked June 04, 2024, 1:06 PM EDT

Hey ya’ll— I have a lil native plant/apple orchard in front of my house and there’s been an abundance of columbine that has happily pasteled across one side of it. In the middle I found one single plant with this variation that I haven’t seen before here. Is this a natural mutation I could save seeds from? I love the color it’s a stunning but subtle change. Was also wondering if someone at the U might be interested in it! Thanks for the help, Mike

Hennepin County Minnesota

Expert Response

Thanks for your question.

The specific flowers you are seeing are NOT due to any type of spontaneous mutation. Columbine is capable of both self-pollination and cross-pollination. These flowers arose from 2023 seeds that were deposited in this particular area. These seeds most likely arose from cross-pollination occurring in 2023 between plants of slightly different genetic backgrounds contributing to flower colors. In other words, these 2024 plants with this pinkish color are hybrids. While you could attempt to save seeds from them, it is very difficult to predict what color the resulting plants would have. See the following for a bit more information on flower color in columbine:

https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/beauty/columbines/birdsandbees.shtml - :~:text=The main pollinator for a,for the study of speciation.

https://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1393606/ - b

Thanks for consulting our forum.

An Ask Extension Expert Replied June 04, 2024, 2:58 PM EDT

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