The Penstemon (pen-STAY-mon) is a herbaceous, evergreen plant. It blooms in early summer and when it's in bloom, you really don't notice anything else in your garden. It's stately stems rise from three to four feet tall and produces long, tubular-shaped, five-petaled flowers. It starts blooming from the bottom of the stem upward. The blooms on the bottom of the stem maintains it's color until blooming is complete. It's in full bloom for six to eight weeks. Deadheading will increase the bloom period a while longer.
The Penstemon is a fantastic xeriscaping plant and is grown throughout North America. It's grown profusely in Arizona where you know they don't even know what rain is . ..as you've probably figured, they don't like soggy soils.
Native Americans chewed on the roots of this plant to relieve toothache.
The foliage of this plant hugs the ground. Never getting more than two to three inches tall. This makes it a fantastic ground cover during the winter.
It multiplies rapidly with pups originating from the mother plant. I started with three plants. After about two years I began giving them to friends and relatives. Now they are tossed into the woods if I can't find good home for them.
Rabbits deplore this plant but hummers and bees LOVE it.
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