COLUMBINE  , an erect perennial herbaceous plant known botanically as Aquilegia vulgaris (natural

order Ranunculaceae) . In Med .. Latin it was known as Columbina sc. herba, the dove's plant . The slender stem bears delicate, long-stalked, deeply divided leaves with blunt segments, and a loose panicle of handsome drooping blue or white flowers, which are characterized by having all the five petals spurred . The plant occurs wild in woods and thickets in England and Ireland, and flowers in early summer . It is well known in cultivation as a favourite spring flower, in many varieties, some of which have red flowers .