5 Flowers That Look Like Bells and How to Identify Each

French single late tulips come in a rainbow of colors, including orange and pink.
ISmiths/Shutterstock.com

Written by John Perritano

Published: September 23, 2023

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Claude Monet knew a thing or two about flowers. The French impressionist painted chrysanthemums, peonies, and roses, among others. “I must have flowers, always, and always,” he said. While a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, Monet took great pains to understand the floral shapes he painted. In fact, he was a gardener of some renown. His pond was dappled in water lilies, while he also grew willows, roses, wisteria, and peonies. Gardeners today also try to mix and match floral shapes and colors to create the right look in their own works of art. 

It takes some imagination. There are eight different floral forms ranging from cone-shaped flowers like echinacea to clusters like hydrangeas. Bell-shaped flowers are among the most popular. As Monet knew, and as you can tell by his 1885 Vase of Tulips among other works, they are beautiful and come in a variety of colors and variations.  Let’s stroll through the garden and take a peek at 5 flowers that look like bells and how to identify each.

Monet's Garden and Pond

Claude Monet’s garden and pond at Giverny, France.

Bluebell

Bluebells are perennials (they bloom each year) that begin their lives deep in the soil as bulbs. Each flower has six petals with tips curled upwards. The flowers bloom on one side of the plant’s stem. Bluebells come in different varieties. Hyacinthoides non-scripta is the English version, while Hyacinthoides hispanica grows in Spain. In North America, there are several types, including the Mertensia virginica, better known as Virginia bluebell.

While each variety has different attributes, all bloom in the spring. The English bluebell emerges a vibrant shade bordering on purple. The English bluebell goes by different monikers, including harebell and fairy flower. It grows as a wildflower in woodland areas and can cover vast fields. Gardeners like them because they thrive in the shady parts. The English bluebell can be found across Europe, especially carpeting ancient woodlands.

For its part, the Virginia bluebell can be as dark as its English cousin, although some bloom pink and a lighter shade of blue.  The Spanish bluebell can turn pink, blue, or white. The plant is very hearty. While English and Virginian bluebells grow on one side, the flowers of the Spanish variety grow along the entire stem. Regardless of whether they come from England, Spain, or North America, you can easily identify a bluebell by its petals.  

Sunlit Bluebells with a shallow depth of field

Brightly colored purple bluebell flowers.

Foxglove

If there was ever a bell-shaped flower that screams “Look at me!” it would have to be foxglove (Digitalis). Native to Europe and the Mediterranean, foxglove is a tall plant that comes in several varieties. Grecian foxglove, as well as the common foxglove, are grown commercially for the medicinal quality of its leaves. The foliage can be dried and processed into digitalis, a drug taken by those with heart disease.

As an ornamental flower, though, foxglove is beyond jaw-dropping. Its spikey stems can grow up to 60 inches tall, while its flowers can range in color from purple to yellow, to white, and pink. Their height, their color, as well as their ability to flourish in different regions, make foxglove a popular garden plant. Yet in some places, people consider foxglove an invasive species because of the easy way it spreads. The flower blooms in the summer and then drop its seeds.

Foxglove is a biennial that grows every two years. Its leaves are coarse, almost quilt-like, and grow in bundles close to the ground. A single plant may produce two to three flowering stems. Flowers bloom progressively as the stem grows, with many varieties producing 20 to 80 flowers, which tilt downward. The inside of each is spotted and a popular destination for bumblebees. The insects, in their rush for pollen, will crawl deep inside the flower emerging with their loot stuck to their bodies. 

Foxglove leaves are poisonous to humans because of digitoxin, the same cardiac glycoside that can save the life of a person with a weak heart. Doctors have used digitalis therapy for about 200 years. Because of the flower’s deadly properties, mystery writers, including Agatha Christie, have used foxglove as a murder weapon in many whodunits. In real life, death by foxglove is rare, although once there was an epidemic of poisonings in Belgium and Holland after a labeling snafu.

Fresh blooming digitalis

Fresh blooming purple and white foxglove in a field.

Tulips

Tulips (Tulipa) light up any garden. Over the centuries, horticulturalists have cultivated different colors and patterns.  Regardless of the type, tulips start out as bulbs that eventually sprout two or three large leaves at the base. Each plant produces a single bell-shaped flower.

Tulips are among the first plants to flower in spring after the bulbs are planted in the fall. Over the centuries, horticulturalists have cultivated around 4,000 varieties spanning different hues, including yellows, reds, purples, pinks, and even black. Some varieties are streaked with colorful blossoms, while others are solid in color.  Tulips thrive in sunny areas where the soil drains easily. The flowers soak up the moisture of melting snow and spring rains. A dry summer, however, means that they will grow heartier the next year.

Tulips are perennials and will bloom for years until they don’t. Still, tulip bulbs will split and spread after the first year’s bloom as smaller bulbs emerge from the root. To stave off the ravages of time, experts suggest digging up the bulbs after the plants have bloosomed and the leaves have turned yellow. Store them in a dry space and replant them in the autumn.  

Traditional old buildings and tulips in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Tulips in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Columbine

Columbine (Aquilegia) is another bell-shaped flower that can make your garden extremely colorful. The flower sits atop thin, wavy stalks and blooms in the middle of spring. The flowers are an important source of nectar for hummingbirds and pollen for bees.  The plants are wispy and will bend with the slightest breeze. Still, the plant is hearty and will bloom for nearly four weeks or more. When it stops, columbine will self-seed to return again in the spring.   

When it comes to soil, columbine is not picky, although it seems to do well in sandier, lighter, soil than it does in heavier clay. If the outside temperature is ferociously warm, the flower will not do as well as it does in cooler weather.

Some varieties are small and will only grow to six inches in height. Regardless of its height, the flowers can be extremely colorful. The Crimson Star, for example, is red and blooms up to six weeks when the weather warms in late spring and early summer. Some varieties, such as “McKana Hybrid,” are a mixture of two colors, such as red and yellow, or blue and white.

It’s important to know that many columbine varieties will not bloom during their first season when it uses most of its energy in establishing a strong root system. By the second season, however, the flower will bloom. Unfortunately, columbine lives up to three years. But because the flower sheds its seeds easily, and reestablishes itself, you might not even realize the plant has succumbed.     

Beautiful Columbine Flower

Columbine flowers.

Lilies of the Valley

Lilies of the valley are low-growing flowers that can bloom white or pink. They tend to spread over an area quickly and will bloom in late spring and early summer. Their bell-shaped flowers are fragile. The plant is mostly foliage at its base with a leafless stem, which can grow up to 12 inches tall. The flowers — up to 15 — grow on one side of the stem and last for nearly a month.

Although the flowers are tiny, they have a beautiful scent, although some varieties are less fragrant. If you’re superstitious, legend has it that the lilies of the valley will protect your garden from evil spirits.     

Springtime, spring fresh bouquet of lilies of the valley, pink roses, blooming viburnum

A bouquet of lilies of the valley, pink roses, blooming viburnum.


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About the Author

John Perritano

I am an award-winning journalist who has a written numerous articles and books (fiction and nonfiction) for adults and children. I've worked for some heavyweight publishers include Scholastic, Time/Life, National Geographic, among others. I have a passion for animals, including my dogs, cats, and a frog who doesn't have a name.

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