A vigorous twining climber to 2 metres or more with fine stems and large heart shaped leaves with tiny maroon tipped green flowers, the smallest in the genus that we have encountered.

We have struggled to maintain this plant for any length of time and its hardiness, at least in our experience, is questionable. It does grow readily from seed though so we never seem to be without it for long.

Seed is very fine and brown.

Central Himalaya from Nepal to Sikkim.

Image: © Mike Ireland

Image: © Bob Armstrong

A twining climber closely related to C. tubulosa . The corolla is bright green and tubular and slightly flared, the calyx lobes being rather short and darker towards the tips. The buds are dark and the leaves relatively large and toothed.

We have been successful with inter-nodal cuttings on one occasion.

The seed is small and dark brown.

Central and Eastern Himalaya and Tibet

Images: © Bob Armstrong

Although over the years we have thought we were growing it, every time except once it turned out to be C.clematidea. The one time that we did flower it we managed to plant it in exactly the wrong place and lost it after one season! It is an attractive little scrambling plant with small leaves and lovely straight sided bells, rather reminiscent of a bluebell in shape, with dark maroon markings internally and pale maroon externally.

When we were granted National Collection status this was one of the species we targeted and we have now been donated plants by two kind people. We look forward to seeing them flower and collect seed of course ( the best way of keeping a plant going, especially when it has proved tricky in the past).

Finally, in July 2021, we witnessed a flowering and what an exquisite flower it is. We raised this from seed sown in early 2019 and intend to grow it on for another year before deciding where to grow it. These wonderful photographs were taken by our friend, Mike Ireland, who rushed round to take these as soon as we told him!

Bhutan, Tibet and Nepal

Images: © Mike Ireland

This twining climber is one of our favourites with green bells covered in fine dark red lines and faint bands of pale red. Even the calyx has radiating fine red lines. Inside there is a circle of dark red dots and a scalloped line lower down. The leaves are larger and more pointed than its cousins with a toothed edge.

This species is often misnamed C.tangshen in the nursery trade and consequently in seed lists.

The seed is fine and reddish brown.

South East Tibet

Images: © Mike Ireland

Superficially similar to C.obtusa  but always flowers later, usually mid to late June, is quite vigorous reaching 4′ and stronger blue flowers lined with pale purple on the outside and stained deep purple inside with a deep green and white base. The leaves have pale edges. We grow our plant on an East facing trellis in quite poor but well drained soil.

The seeds are large and brown and the carrot shaped tuber is surrounded by a tangle of fleshy roots. It will need a very large pot if not in the ground.

Images: © Mike Ireland

The most frequently encountered member of the genus and an easy garden plant with pale blue campanulate bells with fine darker blue lines on the outside and two purple concentric rings on the inside and orange and black at the base.

In our experience this can be a quite variable species but hardly surprising considering its vast range. This is a non climber but will twine on low supports up to a height of 3′ flowering around mid June.

The seed is brown and relatively large. As mentioned in the Identification section this is an easy species to spot early since the bud is totally enclosed by the calyx lobes.

Afghanistan to Himachal Pradesh

Images: © Mike Ireland

Translates as graceful slim bells which sums up this small twining climber perfectly. Lovely slightly flared violet blue tubular flowers fading to white at the tips hang from a lime green calyx amongst tiny bright green leaves with dark outer edges. This species appears to be slightly tender and rather short lived unfortunately although it will self sow but it’s best to collect seed and sow each year to ensure a succession of plants. The slightly foxy smell associated with the genus is at its most pungent with this one! Instead of a tuber there are fleshy roots which can be used for root cuttings.

The seed is black and quite large.

Nepal, Tibet and South West China at a lower altitude than most Codonopsis

Image: © Mike Ireland

Image: © Bob Armstrong

A large tender twining climber for pot culture. Codonopsis inflata has distinctive large leaves with red edges and will produce new plants by runners. The lovely maroon flowers appear so late in the summer that seed is rarely produced, at least in our experience. We have only obtained seed once since we’ve grown this one and then it didn’t germinate! The tuber is large and carrot shaped so a large pot is essential.

Himalaya from Northern India and Nepal to Bhutan

Images: © Bob Armstrong

The flower shape of this delightful little twining climber is like no other in the genus that we are aware of. The yellowish green tubular flowers hang amongst small hairy leaves on pinkish stems. This can be quite vigorous with a mass of flowers in mid summer and in other years hardly puts in an appearance at all. In 2014 our garden plant began flowering in October right up until Christmas! In 2015 it was back to its best. We find that in wet summers slugs are a real problem with this species so one must be vigilant.

The seed is small and brown.

Taiwan

Image: © Bob Armstrong

Image: © Mike Ireland

A puzzling species that we have, as yet, been unable to identify. Our plants were grown from seed given to us by the previous collection holder. It is superficially similar to C. pilosula but the flowers are slightly larger and quite cream in colour with wide spread bells rather frilly at the edges. The heart shaped leaves also differ from C.pilosula.

The medium sized seed on this twining climber is dark brown and the tuber carrot shaped.

From botanic garden in Chollipo in Korea although origins are unknown.

Image: © Mike Ireland

Image: © Bob Armstrong

A distinctive species in many ways, its only close relative being C.ussuriensis. The RHS still consider these two species as one but Chinese authorities believe them to be distinct and we are inclined to agree with them.On the short lateral shoots that bear the large cream/green bell shaped flowers are small clusters of three or four leaves. The inside of the bell is marked deep red in a variety of patterns, we’ve never seen two plants the same. It is a hardy twining climber reaching two or three metres. When the plant is young it needs plenty of moisture until the carrot shaped tuber becomes large enough to support itself through dry spells. Consequently we have lost several plants in our dry East Coast conditions here.

Seed is large and straw coloured with a “wing” attached.

Eastern Siberia, Japan, Korea and China

Image: © Mike Ireland

Image: © Simon Garbutt

Image: © Simon Garbutt

Sturdy non climbing plant always the first to flower in our garden usually around the end of May.

The flowers are bell shaped of the palest blue with pale purple on the inside and a green base. The corolla is slightly wider than deep with quite recurved petals. As the flowers age they gradually increase in size. The whole plant reaches about 2′ and as much again across.

The seed is brown and much finer than Cc cardiophylla and clematidea, both of which look superficially similar.

Northern Pakistan and possibly Afghanistan

Images: © Mike Ireland

Standing at approximately 18″ this is one of our favourites with distinct lantern shaped light blue flowers with darker blue veins inside and out turning to dark purple towards the base. The bud is long and purplish blue. On a mature specimen the flowers are numerous with as many as 50 on our oldest plant. One year the earliest flowers all opened as doubles and the later ones singles. We believe a late frost caused a type of fasciation that year. Whatever, it was very beautiful!

This is a plant of open hillsides and we are currently growing it in a stony scree garden, a sand garden and in richer soil in our woodland. The common factor here is sharp drainage in all three sites. We find it sulks if grown in a pot and much prefers its freedom flowering early to mid June.

The seed is dark brown and medium sized.

Pakistan to Kashmir

Images: © Mike Ireland

In our early years of growing Codonopsis this twining climber occurred quite frequently masquerading as Cc tangshen, rotundifolia amongst others. We grew it in the open garden for many years before a series of cold winters killed it (we think) and have struggled to get it established again. It is not particularly striking with rather dingy cream flowers with a purplish sheen giving quite a shiny appearance. We have grown both green and dark red stemmed varieties.

The seeds are medium sized and dark brown and the tuber carrot shaped.

Northern China

Image: © Bob Armstrong

Image: © Mike Ireland

Image: © Mike Ireland

Raised from seed and flowered for the first time in late July 2011. Although a variant of C.pilosula, the small cream flowers are quite attractively marked on the inside with dark red lines and speckl;es in the lower half. A twining climber, it will reach two metres in a good year. Although this and the type are less striking than some of the other members of the genus they both have a quiet charm and are worth growing.

The seed is small and dark brown.

China

Image: © Mike Ireland

A fairly new one to us but it’s bulking up promisingly. There are two variants as far as we are aware but they are dealt with separately but all three are worth growing. This twining climber has beautiful straight sided bells in yellowish green with maroon staining on the outside and dark maroon speckles internally. The calyx and bud are also quite distinctive with fine lines in maroon radiating out from the stem.

Seed is small and brown.

Pakistan to Central Nepal and Kashmir

Images: © Mike Ireland

A large vigorous twining climber with large shallowly toothed leaves with prominent veins on the underside. The typical campanulate bell is quite variable with green/slatey blue on the outside and blotched and spotted with maroon on the inside, but sometimes hardly at all. It is worth seeking out a good form. It seems to flower better in a well lit situation and will self seed if happy.

The seed is quite large and brown.

Kashmir

Images: © Bob Armstrong

A plant that we first saw in Ron McBeath’s nursery in Scotland, not surprising really, as SSSE stands for Sino-Scottish Sichuan Expedition in 1992. Affinity to deltoidea has been appended since.

This is a vigorous twining climber with green straight sided bells with fine dark red lines and broad pale red vertical bands externally and faint red spotting internally. The leaves are large with serrated edges occasionally with a red edge.

The seed is brown and medium sized.

China (Sichuan certainly, possibly wider spread)

Images: © Bob Armstrong

A large, vigorous twining climber not often seen, seed lists usually proving to be Cc rotundifolia var. angustifolia or pilosula. This is surprising since C.tangshen is the only member of the genus, at least as far as we are aware, with an inferior calyx i.e. the calyx lobes completely enclose the calyx when the flower opens. The large flowers are greenish throughout with internal markings and the seeds are large and brown . C.tangshen will hybridise with others and we have grown a rather attractive hybrid in the past (see photo below).

Another diagnostic is the very striking purple seed capsule, not something we’ve noticed on any otherwith the exception of C.javanica which we have seen growing at Kew.

China. Much used in Chinese medicine

Images: © Bob Armstrong

A tubular flowered twining climber similar to C. benthamii with a green corolla, slightly more yellow at the tips of the petals. The calyx lobes are much longer than on C. benthamii and the flower shape is slightly less waisted. The stems are dark red and leaves large and pointed with prominent pale veins on the underside.

Seeds and tuber shape are unknown as this is a new species for us.

South West China, Sichuan and Yunnan

Image: © Bob Armstrong

Although we grow many Pseudocodon quite easily, for some reason we struggle to get P.hirsutus established. Thank goodness our friend, Jane Leeds, has no problems with it as she keeps supplying us with seeds and the occasional tuber. As the name suggests, the lower leaves are extremely hairy and quite rounded and the stem only twines in the upper part, a habit it shares with P.graminifolius.

It is endemic to China and grows in Sichuan and Yunnan.

Image: © Jane Leeds

A lovely twining climber up to a metre or more in the Pseudocodonopsis group with small (about the size of periwinkle, hence the name) deep violet blue saucer shaped flowers fading slightly towards the centre giving the impression of a faint ring. Although smaller than Cc forrestii and grey-wilsonii it is just as beautiful and, like its cousins, will perform well in a pot. The leaves are toothed and an early diagnostic is the non-clasping calyx lobes when in bud.

The seed is small and light brown.

Images: © Mike Ireland

Originally grown from seed collected on the Alpine Garden Society expedition to China in 1994 and originally thought to be C.pinifolia but almost certainly much closer to C.forrestii, possibly a naturally occurring hybrid between the two. It has long shallowly toothed leaves and large open pale blue flowers with a prominent style. In our garden it flowers considerably earlier than C.forrestii.

Seed is light brown and medium sized.

China

Image: © Bob Armstrong

Image: © Jane Leeds

Another twining climber of the Pseudocodonopsis group with large open blue flowers, slightly paler than C.vinciflora, with a dark “eye”. Codonopsis forrestii flowers later than both C. vinciflora and C.grey-wilsonii and in some years is the last to flower for us. The leaves are less toothed than C.vinciflora and the calyx lobes fully clasp the bud. C.forrestii can be quite vigorous reaching 2 metres or more and makes a grand spectacle in late summer.

The seed is medium sized and light brown.

Yunnan, Sichuan and possibly Tibet

Images: © Mike Ireland

Pseudocodon grey-wilsonii

Pseudocodon grey-wilsonii Himal Snow

Beautiful large blue open flowers about 2″ across with a distinct hairy purple ring make a gorgeous show from August onwards much admired by garden visitors. Previously named C.nepalensis but re-named in honour of research carried out by Chris Grey-Wilson. This fully hardy twining climber will thrive in a large pot.

The white flowered form, C.grey-wilsonii Himal Snow also responds to pot culture although we find it to be less vigorous. This species and its allies (e.g Cc forrestii, vinciflora etc) are grouped in the sub-genus Pseudocodonopsis and all have pale spherical tubers which produce offsets making an easy method of propagation.

Seed is medium and dark brown.

In 2018 we flowered a completely pale blue form for the first time and, if it persists in future years,  may merit its own cultivar name

West and Central Nepal

Image: © Bob Armstrong

Image: © Bob Armstrong

Image: © Mike Ireland

Another of the Pseudocodonopsis group with rounded pale tubers. Clearly related to C. forrestii etc this beauty rises to 5 feet or so but only the leafless upper part of the stem twines. The leaves are long and very thin giving the plant its name but we think graminifolia (grass leaved) rather than pinifolia (pine leaved) would be a better name! The open flowers are about the same size as C. vinciflora and a similar blue but with a very dark maroon ring in the centre, quite striking.

As the plant emerges in spring the leaves are all pressed back against the main stem.

The seed is small and brown.

China, South Sichuan and Northern Yunnan

Images: © Bob Armstrong

From quite a wide spread across the Himalaya comes this unusual Codonopsis ( so unusual the Chinese have placed it in its own genus). We have never come across it before although it deserves to be better known with its large deep maroon flowers and attractive foliage and stems tinged purple. When we took over the National Collection we were donated a large seed bank by the previous collection holder and the seed was simply labelled CC7057 which, to be honest, we didnt think was Codonopsis seed as it was quite elongated. As it grew it didnt much resemble any of our other plants either. Thank goodness we persevered because it flowered for the first time in August 2018, five years after sowing.”

Images: © Bob Armstrong