Is it true there are less blue flowers in the world than other colours?

Question

Is it true there are less blue flowers in the world than other colours?

Answer 1

Yes, that is true.

Blue is probably the least common color in the garden. While not common among flowers, it is even less common among other plant parts. Of course, there are the blue leaves of rue, some hostas, some ornamental grasses and blue spruce. And there are blue fruits on some perennials, such as the Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum); vines, such as the porcelain berry (Ampelopsis); and shrubs, such as the arrowwood (Viburnum).  Being an uncommon color, blue flowers can add variety to a garden. They also can be used to evoke the perception of distance, the feeling of relaxation, or mirror "blue" moods. There are probably more blue flowers available for your garden than you might imagine.

wink

Answer 2

well i don't really see that many blue flowers around where i live, except blue bonnets........but i don't nor do i think anybody else knows all the flowers of the world....there could be like an undiscovered island of blue flowers

Answer 3

Blue is less common as a flower pigment. Color is part of what attracts a specific pollinator to the flower. Pale colors or white work day or night because they are reflective so seen by more kinds of potential pollinators. Pale flowers need less pigment so are easier, flowers can achieve these  with fewer resources. The particular pigments that produce blue need very specific pH and cofactors to show in the range we call true blue.

Many insects see color very differently from birds or mammals so flowers color themselves depending on the kind of vision their preferred pollinator has. Cobalt blue Salvia azurea attracts humming birds as does blue Lobelia but as a rule bird pollinated flowers are red toned.

Purple blues tend to attract more bees. These contain the anthocyanin called cyanidin. Delphinidin seems to be in the pigment that is found in the flowers we see as bluest. It was named for delphiniums but it is present in violas & daylilies but not roses. However in plants like daylilies it never shows a true blue color. The pigment appears red if the pH is low and it seems these plants have this. It also needs a cofactor, quercetin, to produce a blue color. So daylillies rarely show definite blues. Some careful breeding now shows blue color in the markings though. "Got the Blues" shows both the blue and red of anthocyanin in its eye.

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showima...

Blue flowers

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1...

http://gentian.rutgers.edu/nathist.htm

http://gentian.rutgers.edu/gallery.htm

Wildflowers listed by color

http://www.wildflowerinformation.org/Col...