Authors: L.
Clump to colony-forming spreading freely by slender rhizomes. Very variable in stature, from 8-60cm or more. Radical leaves ovate to lanceolate, cordate or rounded at the base, crenate, usually pubescent or hirsute. Flowers 2.5-4cm long, bell-shaped in shades of violet or white, in dense, terminal head-like clusters on erect stems. Europe, widespread, in grassland among scrub and woodland margins. Several subspecies and cultivars are known, most of which are too tall and invasive for the rock garden. Worth considering are C.g. subsp. serotina (Alps and Balkan peninsula) with 2-8cm long decumbent flowering stems, and C.g. 'Acaulis' which has erect stems 5-15cm in height.
