To me this plant is a "plain Jane" perennial. It has few pests or diseases and is a reliable bloomer, but it has no WOW factor. The flowers are attractive, but very tiny. The plant gets 3 - 4 feet tall. It does bloom late in the season which is a plus for those who need late summer/early fall interest. It spreads readily so you want to plant it in a large area where this feature would be a plus. Below is a large patch not yet blooming (just to show you what the full plant looks like). Does anyone else grow this? What do you think of it?
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I feel the same way about the Obedient Plant, Zoey. I'm going to post some of my pictures.
ReplyDeleteMy dad has some. His generall have tons of blooms though, so they don't seem too boring.
ReplyDeleteSabine, I just came from your site. I thought, :"Wow, we posted about the same plant at the same time." Then I read that you had seen mine. LOL
ReplyDeleteI went on a garden walk one year and a man had a huge spot of this about 5 feet tall. I thought it looked beautiful and went right out and bought two plants. Mine has never thrived like his. Your dad, Sylvana, probably has a similar touch. Once all of mine bloom they will look better, too.
I LOVE the variegated variety.
ReplyDeleteIt currently lives in a whiskey barrel, and spreads a little more each year.
It's a pretty rock-solid plant, handling my spotty watering with only a few brown leaf tips, and weathering my zone 5 winters in the pot without a problem.
Jenn, I have never seen the varigated. Could you post a picture?
ReplyDeleteInteresting question and my answer is: I agree with you and just don't like the look of this plant. I tried it and ripped it right out. I especially don't like the variegated - too busy-looking for me.
ReplyDeleteIt grows in my garden with abandoment. I love it, with heavy (read really heavy) clay soils and stinking hot summers it just thrives and fills in the gaps. I particularly like the white variety though.
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