tall larkspur

Delphinium exaltatum, known by the common name tall larkspur, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Delphinium, part of the buttercup family. Other Delphinium species are also commonly known as tall larkspur, such as Delphinium barbeyi. D. exaltatum is native to the central and eastern United States, where it can be found in Kentucky, Maine, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, and Missouri.

D. exaltatum is a perennial herb producing a stem up to 2 metres (6.6 ft) tall from a long, thick taproot. The base of the stem may have a reddish tinge and it is free of leaves by the time the plant blooms. The leaves are somewhat circular or pentagonal in outline and are divided into a few wedge-shaped lobes. The leaf blade is borne on a petiole up to 15 centimeters long. Flowering occurs between July and September. The inflorescence is a raceme of up to 30 flowers. The sepals are any shade of dull blue to purple or lavender, or occasionally white. The fruit is a follicle roughly a centimeter long.