Platycodon Grandiflorum. Balloon Flower or Chinese Bellflower, is a hardy perennial that has a particularly long flowering season, from June to late summer.  Just before the flower buds open they swell into a rounded shape, hence the name.  The plants can attain two to three feet in height and thrive in full sun or partial shade.  The flowers are excellent for cutting.

Sow the seeds in open ground at the beginning of spring and they should germinate in two to three weeks but will not flower for two to three years.  Balloon Flower came into cultivation in 1782 in China, Manchuria and Japan.

Heirloom seeds are collected from the gardens and grounds of George Washington's Mount Vernon and cleaned and packaged by hand.