Earlybird White is a compact columbine bred to bloom early and face its flowers upward, so the clean white blooms look at you instead of the ground. It flowers in spring on tidy plants around a foot tall over lacy foliage.

Site it in morning sun with afternoon shade and well-drained soil; columbines in Birmingham prefer to dodge the worst late-day heat. Hummingbirds and early bees visit. After bloom, the ferny foliage carries the spot into summer.