The fragrant, lavender-blue flowers of this low-growing perennial spread amiably among other plants in the shady woodlands of eastern North America and in every county of Ohio. The mats of foliage typically reach 12 to 15 inches in height, forming large, flowing colonies that blanket the ground in gentle hues of violet, rose, blue and, occasionally, white, during early to mid-spring. The flowers are pollinated by long-tongued insects that are able to reach the nectar deep in the base of the long flower tube. Other insects visit for the pollen at the rim of the tube. This particular species is taller than the common moss phlox and has a more open habit. It favors rich, moist, well-drained soils but also tolerates drier soils and drought. A light summer mulch will help to retain moisture and keep the roots cool. Although it blooms at the same time as some spring ephemerals, woodland phlox is considered to be semi-evergreen; the foliage declines in late summer but often remains through fall and into winter. If needed, prune after flowering to tidy the plant’s appearance, but wait until spring to remove winter-damaged foliage from the clump. Rabbits may nibble the flowers, but deer reportedly tend to avoid browsing the hairy plant.
This is one of the only Phlox species to have both fertile (flowering) and infertile (non-flowering) shoots. The mostly unbranched fertile stems tend to be taller and more densely hairy than the infertile stems. The leaves on the infertile stems have more rounded tips and are wider and less hairy. The fertile stems die back after seeds are produced, leaving a rounded mound of dark green foliage to produce and store energy for the following year’s flowering shoots.
Native habitats include woodlands, fields, and banks of streams. Use in rock gardens, border fronts, wild gardens, native plant gardens, or naturalized areas. Provides shallow-rooted cover for early spring bulbs.
Plant Characteristics:
Grows 12-15" tall.
Prefers part to full shade.
Grows in average to moist, well-drained soils, including clay. Tolerates drought.
Flowers bloom in loose clusters at the ends of sticky, hairy stems from early April to late May. Each flower is up to 1-1/2" wide with 5 flat, notched, petal-like lobes. Rounded fruits start out green and dry to brown, ovoid seed capsules that split to release several small, black seeds.
Opposite, hairy, lance-shaped to elliptic leaves have smooth margins and are up to 2" long.
Leafy shoots spread along the ground, rooting at the nodes.
Wildlife Value:
Host plant for larvae of 7 Lepidoptera species, including olive arches, spotted straw sun moth, and common idia. Butterflies (especially tiger swallowtails), skippers, hummingbird clearwing and sphinx moths, and bumblebees pollinate the plant when retrieving nectar. Bees, flies, and other insects gather pollen. Deer tend to avoid browsing.
Resources:
Dyck Arboretum of the Plains
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Hz_cFIxbrS4
Missouri Botanical Garden
https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=e580
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
https://ohiodnr.gov/discover-and-learn/plants-trees/flowering-plants/wild-blue-phlox
University of Wisconsin-Madison
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