At Floom we’re all about giving, so this July we’re giving you two flowers of the month for the (virtual) price of one… Don’t ever say we don’t treat you. Introducing larkspur and delphinium (the birth month flower for July). And no, before you ask, they aren’t the same stem…
![Delphinium Blue](https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-blue_180711_132124.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1440&s=9dafd32c362852baf477bd9b3170b142 1440w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-blue_180711_132124.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1000&s=d3d06a28eeeb9ed6031b973567e8dd32 1000w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-blue_180711_132124.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=600&s=31b74aa016b9c50eb6c065ee9186a9fb 600w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-blue_180711_132124.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=400&s=c3cee512e29e7aa4f81ff37479ec01b6 400w)
You’d be forgiven for thinking that was the case though. To look at, both larkspur and delphinium have trumpet-shaped flowers with a front collar of five single or double sepals and a long, tapered funnel in the back, right? But despite being frequently mislabeled and confused for each other – even by us experts – there are some notable differences between the two which caused the botanical powers that be to reclassify the larkspur from the genus Delphinium to Consolida last year.
![Delphinium Larkspur](https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-larkspur_180711_132153.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1440&s=08da3080872b75a08e3403e927bc5a18 1440w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-larkspur_180711_132153.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1000&s=de9e6cc9097635d3820c73909be8f08c 1000w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-larkspur_180711_132153.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=600&s=bd01561615bd22ee2443165b11d658f3 600w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-larkspur_180711_132153.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=400&s=1513e85da6ac592a4f8aae8c291e3ea4 400w)
So, what is the actual difference? While closely related to the better-known delphinium, the consolida differs most noticeably in the structure of its flowers: open, loosely-arranged spikes of petals replace the dense column of flowers found in a delphinium. But perhaps the most apparent is colour. While the palette of delphinium is predominantly blue and white, larkspur come in a wide array of colours. Aren’t you happy we got that clarified?
Delphinium take their name, in part, from the Greek word for ‘dolphin.’ It’s yet another sweet example of tenuous comparisons between the shape of a flower and an exotic animal (refer back to previous FOTMs the Snapdragon and Snake’s Head Fritillary, you know you want to). Supposedly the shape of the spur, formed by five petal-like sepals, resembles the back of a dolphin as it crests the waves. Meanwhile, the larkspur are said to resemble a lark’s foot with its long, curving back spur… while a Native American legend – a nice change from all the dysfunctional goings-on amongst the Greek gods – states that the larkspur got its name from a celestial being who descended from heaven via a long spike made out of pieces of parted sky. As he climbed down, the sun dried out the spike and it scattered in pieces once more in the wind. Wherever those pieces of sky touched the earth, great larkspur flowers would burst forth.
![Delphinium Pink 1](https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-1_180711_132234.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1440&s=5969016b563be8fed3e8b7ce1973504b 1440w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-1_180711_132234.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1000&s=793ef0943e859025d006dbd1cb275330 1000w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-1_180711_132234.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=600&s=aa077b67e68143fb58c6fff5a3122442 600w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-1_180711_132234.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=400&s=910c6dbc813437302ea3a7c108ba2fb9 400w)
![Delphinium Pink 2](https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-2_180711_132237.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1440&s=570859ef6deb1e50bf8c2b3da1afe4ad 1440w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-2_180711_132237.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1000&s=327360ae10209e114524222f7f6b9123 1000w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-2_180711_132237.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=600&s=549338eaaec669383d644d8e589c4ff6 600w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/delphinium-pink-2_180711_132237.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=400&s=8cc42ace655fdef6b97c607cdfa1d083 400w)
We’re not completely sold on it either, but what we do know is that the town of Larkspur in Colorado was given its name by Elizabeth Hunt, wife of the governor, in 1871 because of the abundance of such flowers growing in the area. In fact, these largely alpine-dwelling stems are found throughout the northern hemisphere, and also high atop the mountains of tropical Africa.
![Larkspur Blue](https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-Blue_180711_132303.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1440&s=7f857923eb78d7d81d0aff3281c9ca80 1440w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-Blue_180711_132303.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1000&s=6d3f916c3e550d8167ce0d48342e57df 1000w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-Blue_180711_132303.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=600&s=b46a22f80f647566eb2968564b65d5d2 600w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-Blue_180711_132303.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=400&s=2b315a00b713242141fffb81c713df63 400w)
![Larkspur Blue 2](https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-blue-2_180711_132307.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1440&s=25b9d3affe2bc66170d05023c58aa59a 1440w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-blue-2_180711_132307.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=1000&s=2381a5d2a75c29a30a8dff431edc40ba 1000w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-blue-2_180711_132307.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=600&s=2b07ef727113d63775829d96b41854c6 600w, https://floom.imgix.net/general/Larkspur-blue-2_180711_132307.jpg?auto=format&crop=focalpoint&fit=crop&fm=pjpg&fp-x=0.5&fp-y=0.5&ixlib=php-1.1.0&q=65&w=400&s=bc8138a2243999d2e502b1548bd3e458 400w)
And finally, the most unexpected larkspur fact: they are toxic to both humans and animals. Do not eat, we repeat, do not eat this stem! As part of the infamously toxic buttercup family, they secrete delphinine, an alkaloid similar to monkshood’s aconitine that’s dubbed the “the queen of poisons.” If you were to ingest such a stem it’s likely it could slow or stop your lungs and heart. But fortunately, neither larkspur nor delphinium have cropped up in any recipes to date (even in folk remedies) so we can live safe. Toxicity aside, larkspur and delphinium can add a real sprinkle of untamed beauty to a seasonal bouquet.