Delphinium andersonii

Strong wrote:

Delphinium andersonii has finally cracked through the soil.  (Crook County, Oregon)

Carolyn Poff Strong
Zone 3 & 8

Carolyn, welcome to the NARGS Forum, glad you made the jump on over from Alpine-L. And a nice start with the delphinium species waking up, beautiful succulent red-lined leaves.  How tall does this one get for you? 

To get an idea about what to expect I looked it up on CalPhotos, looks most variable from near white to intense blues, and fairly short.
http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?where-genre=Plant&where-taxo...

You climate zone is listed as both 3 & 8, do you garden in two locations?

Pretty little plant :) I am amazed to see all the different American Delphiniums! I want to grow more of the kind ;)

Thanks, Mark.  I have heard that delphiniums can be hard to ID, but since D. andersonii is the only one in this area ID'd in the plant atlas, I believe it is that.  I would say it's about 18" at most. We have mostly deep blues, some shades into purple and a couple of whites.  This is on our 60 acres in the middle of Oregon where I am at quite a bit. (Zone 3, at 4,000') I am moving rocks around on our hill for a dryland garden, but most the 'garden' is natural. 

In Portland, (Zone 8-ish) I have a few troughs & raised beds. At my work location, I have use of the university's neglected rockery where I have some lewisia, penstemons, and other things. 

Carolyn Poff Strong

Great looking emerging leaves!
Those early spring beginnings, or bits of fresh looking overwintered seedlings etc, are among the most exciting plant spottings of the year :)
At least here, where even seeing bare ground (not yet!) is a thrill, and probably in dry interior Oregon too! I imagine Portland to have a much less spartan winter....