Balloon Flower

I would love to tell you about this flower that I discovered last year. It is called a Balloon Flower or Platycodon. My mom picked it out because it was unusual and I know you will agree! It is a fairly hardy perennial.  The flower starts out as a green bud:

 It then slowly starts expanding to a larger "balloon" shape. Changing it's color the entire time. In the case of this particular balloon flower, green, very light shades of violet and then a robust purple! The photo below shows the many stages of the balloon:

 Here is a close up of the immature balloon:

It's amazing how quickly the change takes place. From green bud to full bloom (which you will see in a moment) in about 4-5 days. The plant requires a lot of watering at this stage. I've noticed that when it is blooming, it soaks up water like crazy.

Here we see how beautiful the purple balloon flower compliments the bright colors of the portulacas:

FULL BLOOM!

Once this flower unfurls it's lovely petals it is very delicate and doesn't last very long. It especially does not like to get wet or have the heat of the hot sun. The sun doesn't bother the actual green foliage, only the bloom. I've had it in full sun the entire time, and I do believe that if I moved it to a bit of shade the blooms would last longer. 

A beautiful flower I'll be happy to enjoy year after year!