Cait's Garden

This humble ground cover has slowly crept into my heart this year.  Plumbago, aka leadwort, is a perennial ground cover that reaches 10-12 inches in spread. It does well in sun to part-shade, although I’ve found it excels in part-shade. And it seems fairly drought-tolerant. The flowers are that exquisite shade of pure blue that sort of glows. It is the kind of blue one usually doesn’t find in a hardy Zone 5 perennial. And as a bonus, once the blue petals are gone, you are left with neat-looking little tufts of red that last for a long time. (I believe this red tufty part is called the “sepal” of the plant, but as I am a gardener, not a botanist, I can’t be positive.)

Plumbago is often referred to as a fall season perennial because it blooms until frost and because the leaves turn a bright red in fall. However, I’ve found that the blue flowers start in midsummer and just keep going until frost. The production is truly outstanding. One caveat, though. This plant is slow to awaken in the spring and slow to take off when you plant it new. It pays to begin with a good-sized plant from the garden center.

I started out slowly with this plant, trying just one plant last year and planting two more this year. Now that I’ve gotten to see how fabulous it is, I will be purchasing more of these showstoppers next year. Plumbago/leadwort is a plant saddled with not one, but two unattractive names, but the flowers are gorgeous enough to overcome anything.