It prefers light to medium moisture in well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. Balloon Flower gets its name from the way its flower buds puff up like balloons before bursting open. The flowers are typically blue, sometimes white, 2 - 3 inches across, and stunning. Native to slopes and meadows in China, Japan, Korea, and Siberia. Blooms throughout summer, singly or in small clusters. Traditionally used to treat coughs with profuse phlegm, colds, bronchitis, pleurisy, pulmonary abscesses, and throat infections.