Calico beardtongue is native from Tennessee north to Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana. It has light pink to light purple flowers that are much loved by bees and other pollinators. This species of penstemon is more shade tolerant than others such as P. digitalis, and will also tolerate more moisture in the soil. Spreading notes: Will […] Continue reading "Calico Beardtongue"
Penstemon digitalis is an easy-to-find late spring perennial. The common name of this native comes from foxgloves, native to Europe, which they somewhat resemble. P. digitalis is more common further north and west of our area, but this plant does well here and is a favorite of various bumblebees. Spreading notes: Re-seeds lightly Maintenance notes: […] Continue reading "Foxglove Beardtongue"
Blue phlox is a perennial wildflower that clumps slowly over time. It has light pink to lavender to blue five-petaled blooms in spring. As one of its common name suggests, this phlox does well in a woodland setting and can even handle some dry conditions after it is established. Pair with Celandine poppy, Eastern columbine, […] Continue reading "Blue Wood Phlox"
Wood poppy is a perennial shade-loving ground cover with happy yellow 4-petaled flowers that blooms in the spring. After blooming, it creates green hair-covered fruit pods. Note that the fruit pods and stems contain yellow sap that can stain your skin. This plant can slowly spread to form a ground cover. There is a similar […] Continue reading "Celandine Poppy"
Ohio spiderwort is a plant that is happy in many different conditions. Some of us have it growing in full sun and others in dry shade. It is a clump-forming perennial and blooms successionally, one flower per day, opening in the morning and closing by evening. The leaves are long and grass-like, and it has […] Continue reading "Ohio Spiderwort"
Dwarf crested iris, as its name suggests, is a diminutive species of iris, growing no more than 9 inches tall. This particular iris can do well in somewhat dry, partially sunny places and will slowly spread to form more of a groundcover over time. It has purply-blue showy flowers. It can survive in full sun […] Continue reading "Dwarf Crested Iris"
The little cousin to the more famous Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) and Scarlet Bee Balm (Monarda didyma), Bradbury’s bee balm is a low maintenance herbaceous perennial that blooms before other Monarda species. The leaves are aromatic, and deer tend to avoid it due to the fragrance. Spreading notes: Will self seed over time in low […] Continue reading "Bradbury’s Beebalm"
Lyre-leaf sage is a perennial mint family member that forms a rosette of deeply lobed basal leaves, often shaped like a lyre. Leaves can be purple-tinged in winter, and some populations display reddish blotches in the leaf centers. In spring, upright flower stalks rise 1-1.5 feet above the foliage, bearing whorls of tubular blue-violet flowers […] Continue reading "Lyreleaf Sage"
Moss phlox is a vigorous mat-forming groundcover with needle-like, semi-evergreen foliage that spreads 2-3 feet wide. It is one of the earliest bloomers in our area. Bloom colors range from pink and lavender to purple, red, or white. Each tubular flower is about 3/4 inch wide with five distinctively notched petals. It has many cultivars […] Continue reading "Moss Phlox"