''Campanula latifolia'', the giant bellflower, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of bellflower in the family

Campanulaceae The family Campanulaceae (also bellflower family), of the order Asterales, contains nearly 2400 species in 84 genera of herbaceous plants, shrubs, and rarely small trees, often with milky sap. Among them are several familiar garden plants belo ...

. It is also known as the large campanula and the wide-leaved bellflower. It is native to Europe and western Asia and is widely grown as an ornamental plant.

Description

''Campanula latifolia'' is a clump-forming

perennial A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...

herbaceous plant Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent wood, woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennial plant, perennials, and nearly all Annual plant, annuals and Biennial plant, biennials. Definition ...

growing to a height of . The stem is unbranched, erect ,and shortly pubescent, basal leaves are stalked, broadly ovate with a heart-shaped (

cordate Cordate is an adjective meaning ' heart-shaped' and is most typically used for: * Cordate (leaf shape) The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a ...

) base, while the upper leaves are ovate-lanceolate, stalkless, softly hairy with bluntly toothed margins. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is a many-flowered terminal raceme or in the axils of upper leaves and has subtending bracts. The flowers are hermaphrodite, bell-shaped, initially erect but later nodding ,and long. The calyx is fused with five narrow lobes, eventually spreading. The corolla is pubescent with five dark violet-blue fused petals. There are five stamens and a pistil formed from three fused carpels. The fruit is a hairy, nodding capsule. The flowering period is from July to September.

Distribution and habitat

''Campanula latifolia'' is native to Europe and western Asia as far east as Kashmir. Its natural habitat is broad-leaved woodland, coppices, parkland and forest margins. Some occurrences are as a result of escape from cultivation.

Cultivation

Grows easily even in partial to full shade. Hardy in zone 5. Seeds freely to become naturalised and can spread by rhizomes. Wait until the seed heads are dark brown and then open them and spread the seed around. Withstands drought quite well.

Gallery

File:Campanula latifolia 5.JPG, Young plant

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q526630 latifolia Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus