Plant & Tree Library

Other Names:  Siberian Bugloss

Description:

Large, attractive heart shaped leaves are silver with green veins; pretty blue flowers in spring; makes a nice accent in containers and lightens up shade gardens; avoid hot afternoon sun

Ornamental Features

Alexander's Great Bugloss features airy cymes of blue flowers at the ends of the stems from early to late spring. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive large heart-shaped leaves remain silver in color with distinctive green veins throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Alexander's Great Bugloss is an herbaceous perennial with a mounded form. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other garden plants with finer foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and should be cut back in late fall in preparation for winter. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Alexander's Great Bugloss is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Alexander's Great Bugloss will grow to be about 12 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 28 inches. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 18 inches apart. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in partial shade to shade. It requires an evenly moist well-drained soil for optimal growth. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone over the growing season to conserve soil moisture. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Alexander's Great Bugloss is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a mass of flowers and foliage against which the thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.