Taproot short and thick. Flowering stems 40-60 cm. Leaves biternate, 20-30 cm long. Flowers 2 to 5, nodding, large, 5-10 cm diam., vary in color, mostly blue, with white recurves. Limb of petals colored to whitish. V - early spring to late autumn, some leaves usually overwinter. Fl - May for 2-3 weeks. Fr - July. P - by seed. Flowers the year after sowing. Does well in semi-shade. Good for the rock garden and flower beds. Z 4.

Caucasus, Balkan Peninsula, Anatolia and Iran. Forests and subalpine zones of mountains.