Bottle Gentian
Gentiana andrewsii
Cobalt-blue bottle flowers that never open, pried apart by bumblebees in September and October. One of the last and most intense colors of fall.
Typically 1 pint–1 gal · $9–$30 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
One of the most unusual native perennials. cobalt-blue closed flowers in fall that only bumblebees can force open, creating a pollinator spectacle at the end of the season.
Bottle Gentian is a plant that makes people stop and look twice. The flowers never open: they remain closed, a cluster of rich cobalt-blue bottle-shaped blooms at the stem tips in September and October. It sounds like it couldn't be a good pollinator plant, but bumblebees have figured out how to force their way inside, and they do it repeatedly. Watch one work the flowers for sixty seconds and you'll understand why this plant is so beloved by naturalists. The deep, saturated blue is one of the most intense colors in the native plant palette: nothing else in the fall garden quite matches it. Plant it where you'll actually see it up close, since the scale is modest. It's a collector's plant and a conversation starter in equal measure, with genuine ecological value as one of the last plants to bloom before frost closes the season.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown bottle gentian propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Moist
- Mature size
- 1–2 ft · 12–18 in wide
- Bloom time
- September–October
- USDA zones
- 3–7
- Family
- Gentianaceae
- Native range
- Eastern North America. moist meadows, prairies, stream banks, and open woods from Quebec to Manitoba south to New Jersey, Missouri, and Kansas
Care notes for bottle gentian.
Plant in partial shade to full sun in consistently moist to wet, humus-rich soil. Bottle Gentian requires reliable moisture throughout the growing season and will decline in dry conditions. Slow to establish. be patient through the first two seasons. It resents disturbance; plant it where it can stay. Mark the spot carefully as it disappears completely in winter. Avoid heavy clay or poorly drained sites.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside bottle gentian.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.
Short on Space Package
For gardeners who have an abundance of passion but are short on space, this package features tidy, upright, clump-forming natives that behave and function well in small spaces.
Shade Bed Package
Ferns, sedges, and woodland natives that thrive under existing trees.
Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.