Phlox paniculata 'Blue Paradise'
border phlox
- Position: full sun or partial shade
- Soil: fertile, moist soil
- Rate of growth: average
- Flowering period: July to August
- Hardiness: fully hardy
Phlox have been country garden favourites for years because of their delicious scent and attraction to butterflies and bees. This variety bears fabulous trusses of fragrant, hydrangea-like violet flowers with broad petals and deep purple eyes. They appear from July to August on tall stems with narrow, toothed, mid-green leaves. This pretty perennial will tolerate full sun or partial shade, but like all phlox, does not like soil that dries out in summer. Try it as part of a 'cool' planting scheme based on blue shades. - Garden care: Support with bamboo canes, brushwood or ring stakes before the flowers appear. Phlox are greedy plants, so apply a mulch 5-7cm (2-3in) deep, of well-rotted garden compost or manure in early spring. Shear off the spent flower stems to prevent re-seeding. If the leaves show signs of powdery mildew, cut down to the ground and dispose of the affected foliage, but do not compost it. Clear away the debris around the plant to reduce the chances of reinfection. Lift and divide clumps in autumn and spring.
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My Phlox and Bergamot leaves are browning
Hi there I have a Phlox and some Bergamot which I bought from you a while back and whilst it's growing really well, I am finding that the lower leaves on the Phlox are going brown then yellow. I've been taking them off but as it's happening all the the way up the plant, bit by bit, it's going to look quite bare soon! I wondered why they are going yellow, and what I could do about it please? More or less the same with the Bergamot except that the leaves are going brown around the edges. Should I be taking those off and is there anything I could do to prevent it? Many thanks and best wishes DebbieAsked on 6/16/2009 by Deborah Newbury1 answer
A:
Hello Debbie, It is quite normal for the older leaves on herbaceous perennials to die off as they are putting on new growth, so I would not be too concerned. Towards the end of summer, they will die back completely and in spring next year the cycle will begin again. If the plants look really tatty, then just remove the older foliage. I hope this helps. Helen Plant DoctorAnswered on 6/17/2009 by Crocus Helpdesk
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Fragrant warm-blue flowers with an attractive dark-eye on this evening star that stands out in any late-summer border
Val Bourne - Garden Writer