Creeping Phlox

Creeping phlox is only one member of this amazing plant family that contains some of the most brilliantly coloured perennial garden flowers. This only makes sense because phlox is “flame” in Greek. (I note that flame coloured flowers are also referred to in Greek using this word.)

There are two distinct garden performers in this family. The first (by bloom time) are the late spring blooming ground or creeping phlox plants. P. subulata is the most commonly known but others listed below are excellent garden plants.

The second or summer blooming are the taller Garden Phlox or P. paniculata.

Feeding

A feeding of compost in the spring is all this plant requires in the way of food. Overfeeding produces lush growth that often is burned in the winter. If you find your creeping phlox has some dead patches in the spring, simply dig out the dead patches and fill the resulting hole with compost and garden soil mixed 50:50. The plant will colonize the area quite quickly.

P. subulata are usually two to four inches in height and grow equally well in full hot sunshine or part shade gardens. Blooming in coloured mats of blues, reds, pinks and whites, as well as some bi-colored blooms, this creeping phlox puts on a spring bloom show for six weeks. I note that some unscrupulous garden catalogs claim they bloom all summer but six weeks is about the limit. The green mat expands fairly slowly and while it doesn’t stop weeds from growing, it can be a good ground cover.

It is easily edged and as it expands on top of the soil, it is not considered invasive. It is propagated by divisions or cuttings. It does prefer a well drained soil and clay soils will lead to winter rotting. An excellent rock garden plant.

Recommended varieties include:

Please note that there are other varieties.

Emerald Blue- a deep blue, open plant growth.

Emerald Pink – a clear pink and a tight growing habit. Excellent plant.

Crimson Beauty and Scarlet Flame are both reds with very open growth.

Oakington Blue Eyes - sky blue foliage and heavy bloomer. Excellent.

Snowflake - Nobody said plant people were creative in naming plants.

White Delight - you can guess the color.

Phlox stolonifera (Creeping Phlox)

This native of Northeast North America is one of the most shade tolerant of the low growing phloxes. It is not as vigorous as P. subulata and it has a more open growth habit; not forming as tight a mat. The most common variety is ‘Sherwood Purple’ that has a purplish-blue flower on 6” stems.

P. divaricata

This variety is a little taller than these two other species. It grows to 12 inches tall and very slowly expands. The flowers tend to light blue shades. Grows best in a part shade, moist garden soil this is an excellent blooming plant for the wild shady garden. A hybrid cross of this plant with P. pilosa called ‘Chattahoochee’ is sometimes sold a P.divaricata. If you grow it, constantly make new plants by separating well-rooted divisions from this creeping phlox mother plant as the mother plant tends to die out every few years.






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