From the German common name trollblume, or the Latin trulleus, a basin, referring to the flower shape (Ranunculaceae). Globe-flower. A genus of 25 species of hardy perennials with large buttercup-like blooms and usually with palmately-lobed leaves. They are natives of northern temperate and arctic regions and are at their best beside a pool or stream.
Types of Trollius
- T. europaeus, 1-2 ‘feet, flowers lemon-yellow, May and June, Europe (including northern Britain and South Wales); vars. ‘First Lancers’, deep orange; ‘Earliest of All’, lemon-yellow, April—June; Goldquelle’2 orange-yellow, May; ‘Helios’, citron yellow; ‘Orange Princess’, bright orange-yellow.
- T. ledebourii (syn. T. chinensis), 2-3 feet, flowers deep orange with bright orange stamens, June, northern China; a cultivar is ‘Golden Queen’, 2 feet, bright orange with conspicuous stamens.
- T. pumilus, 6-12 inches, buttercup-yellow, rock garden, June and July, Himalaya.
- T. yunnanensis, 14-2 feet, flowers golden-yellow, western China.
How to grow or plant Trollius
Plant in early autumn in semi-shade or in full sun, provided the soil is deep, moist and loamy. Every three or four years, lift and divide them in autumn. Seed may also be sown, preferably on ripening, in pans or boxes of a loamy compost in September or April and placed in a shaded cold frame or stood in the open in the shade.