Phlox stolonifera: Creeping Woodland Phlox
Some years ago I transplanted the species Phlox stolonifera to my garden. The original plant is still up on the hillside performing year in and year out, ushering in color filled springs in my woodland garden. When selecting a new ground cover I keep a watchful eye out for additional cultivars of this creeping woodland phlox.
Native to eastern U.S., Phlox stolonifera is an Appalachian species reaching from PA to GA, fully hardy up into Zone 4. Foliage is evergreen and stays close to the ground forming a random mat about two inches in height. Eventually the spread of a single plant can reach several feet across in the best of habitats. Stems ramble out crisscrossing each other forming an open weave for other plants to rise through the deep green foliage. Leaves are spatulate, about ¾ inch wide by 2 inches long, with a prominent center vein. When flowering begins a stem rises above the foliage to about 6 or 8 inches having a softly downy cyme located at the end. Blooms are some shade of violet to blue and about one inch across.
Phlox stolonifera performs best when located in an edge of the woods type habitat. It needs light as in bright open shade just short of full sun, and not on the north side of a conifer or wall. A mulch of chopped leaves, compost or hardwood fines is perfect for the creeping stolons to root in as they travel, establishing shallow rooted colonies. Beginning with a well rooted transplant, one can expect a settling in period the first year with some new growth. Within three years you can reasonably expect a spread of two feet in diameter.
There are several selections to choose from when looking through catalogs, chiefly in bloom color and size. Among my favorites is ‘Blue Ridge’ with blue flowers having a lavender cast as they age. ‘Home Fires’ in bright pink have formed a colorful cover in the center of my garden for years now. ‘Sherwood Purple’ is among the most assertive in growth with clear purple flowers. ‘Ariane’ is a large flowered clean white with a yellow eye. There other named cultivars and all of them are good garden plants for the shade garden.
This past fall I added more creeping woodland phlox to my garden in the new Azalea Walk area, three to six transplants, for each section with companions. I am using the clumping Tiarella ‘Crow Feather’ and various Trilliums, such as the white blooming grandiflorum, chocolate blooming cuneatum and yellow lutea. The large mottled leaves of trillium make a good contrast with lustrous leaves of phlox in the background. All of this in sweeps beneath the azalea, oakleaf hydrangea and assorted ferns of differing heights and textures. Other combinations you may want to try could be your favorite selection of phlox with a silver leafed Pulmonaria such as ‘Majeste’, or a hosta with gold in the foliage such as “June”.