Blue Star

Amsonia tabernaemontana

 

Blue Star is an easy to grow native perennial, growing 2 ft. tall and wide. Clusters of light blue, star shaped flowers open in spring. Leaves turn an attractive clear yellow in fall. Hardy from zones 5 through 8.

 

How to grow

Plant Blue Star in sun to part shade and well drained to wet soil. Blue Star is very adaptable, tolerating both drought and flooding! Cut back old stems back anytime during the winter.

 

Where to plant

Blue Star can be planted at the front of flower beds, rain gardens, and along the edges of ponds.

 

Wildlife attracted

Many pollinators are attracted to the flowers of Blue Star. It is a larval host plant for the Snowberry Clearwing moth.

 

Where found in the wild

In the coastal plain, Amsonia tabernaemontana occurs in moist to wet woods, floodplains, and riverbanks, from southeast Virginia south into Georgia. It is common in southeastern North Carolina.

 

Source and origin

Plants grown from seeds collected from a population growing on the edge of a riverbank in Pender County, North Carolina.

 

Comments

Sometimes overlooked by gardeners in favor of showier flowers, Blue Star has a subtle beauty and tough disposition that deserves more attention.

 

Propagation

Nick seed coat, soak overnight in water and sown. Seeds can germinate within a couple of weeks at temperatures above 75°F (24°C).