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Japanese bellflower

Platycodon
Platycodon grandiflorum2.jpg
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Campanulaceae
Subfamily: Campanuloideae
Genus: Platycodon
A.DC.
Species: P. grandiflorus
Binomial name
Platycodon grandiflorus
(Jacq.) A.DC.
Synonyms

Campanula gentianoides Lam.
Campanula glauca Thunb.
Campanula grandiflora Jacq.
Platycodon autumnalis Decne.
Platycodon chinensis Lindl. & Paxton
Platycodon glaucus (Thunb.) Nakai
Platycodon mariesii (Lynch) Wittm.
Platycodon sinensis Lem.


Campanula gentianoides Lam.
Campanula glauca Thunb.
Campanula grandiflora Jacq.
Platycodon autumnalis Decne.
Platycodon chinensis Lindl. & Paxton
Platycodon glaucus (Thunb.) Nakai
Platycodon mariesii (Lynch) Wittm.
Platycodon sinensis Lem.

Platycodon grandiflorus (from Ancient Greek πλατύς "wide" and κώδων "bell") is a species of herbaceous flowering perennial plant of the family Campanulaceae, and the only member of the genus Platycodon. It is native to East Asia (China, Korea, Japan, and the Russian Far East). It is commonly known as balloon flower (referring to the balloon-shaped flower buds), Chinese bellflower, or platycodon.

Growing to 60 cm (24 in) tall by 30 cm (12 in) wide, it is an herbaceous perennial with dark green leaves and blue flowers in late summer. A notable feature of the plant is the flower bud which swells like a balloon before fully opening. The five petals are fused together into a bell shape at the base, like its relatives, the campanulas. There are varieties with white, pink and purple blooms in cultivation. In Korea, white flowers are more common. This plant together with its cultivars 'Apoyama group' and 'Mariesii' have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

swelling balloon-shaped buds

Platycodon grandiflorus by Abraham Jacobus Wendel, 1868


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Wikipedia

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