Cait's Garden

We gardeners love to make jokes about this flower, because the name is so at odds with its behavior in the garden. I’m told it was named this way because the flower stems are easy to bend and work with in flower arranging, which may be true. I’m not one for bringing cut flowers indoors so I haven’t tried it myself. What I do know is that it is very easy to make more Obedient Plants. Just wait a year or two and the clump will be big enough to divide. Which is actually kind of nice. I love flowers that make more of themselves, and as this is clump-forming, it’s easy to control. This bushy, robust plant is 2-3 feet tall, hardy to Zone 3, and starts blooming in late August/September. Its flowers are most commonly found in purple, but there are white and pink varieties out there. It’s one of those plants that you don’t truly appreciate until September, and then you are very glad you have it. And if you don’t have it, seriously, just ask another gardener. I would bet money they have a clump to spare. There is no need to ever buy an Obedient Plant!