Choosing perennials is serious business – after all, we each have a limited amount of space in our gardens. So we ask a lot from the plants we select: We want long, beautiful displays plus a measure of toughness to ensure we can enjoy carefree outdoor living in our gardens.
Arkansas blue star adapts to well-drained sites in full sun or light shade.
Photo Credit: Gerald L. Klingaman
In fall, the grassy foliage of Arkansas blue star lights up the garden with amazing golden color!
Photo Credit: Gerald L. Klingaman
In spring, star-shaped, light blue flowers adorn this hardy perennial.
Photo Credit: Gerald L. Klingaman
Of course, there are lots of plants that measure up to such expectations, but one of my favorites is Arkansas blue star (Amsonia hubrichtii). It meets all these garden requirements with ease, and looks great doing it! This blue star has the durability of the best natives combined with the grace and charm of a refined perennial – and it’s got the bonus of a fantastic display from spring through fall!
This tough perennial grows 3 feet tall from a stout, woody crown. Its graceful branches arch outward and spread up to 4 feet wide on older plants. Pretty, little, star-shaped flowers begin to appear in late April and May in terminal clusters of light blue. The blossoms are about ¾ inches wide, and they hide among the plant’s grasslike foliage. (They later evolve into elongated, cigar-shaped seedpods about the size of a large toothpick.) After flowering, it’s the thin, willowy leaves that take over the show. They’re less than 1/8 inch wide and up to 3 inches long, and they crowd up the stem.
In summertime, Arkansas blue star provides an interesting textural foil for other plants in the garden. (I like this species along a sidewalk or as a specimen in a rock garden, where its sprawling form can really show off.) Then comes fall, and Amsonia hubrichtii begins to put on the finest foliage display among all herbaceous perennials: All those leaves turn gold – and the display lasts upward of three weeks!
Like most of the 15 or so species of Amsonia, all of which are native to the southern half of the US, Arkansas blue star adapts to any well-drained site in either full sun or light shade. Though this plant is best in a more friable soil, it also shows good tolerance for heavier, clay-laden types. This perennial does best planted where there’s an acidic pH, but it’s generally not finicky about soil conditions. (If your soil pH is above 6.8, however, the plant may yellow and show signs of iron deficiency during summer.) It’s hardy from USDA Hardiness zones 5-9.
One other note: In its first year in your garden, Arkansas blue star will likely look a bit spindly and unpromising. But if you amend the soil with lots of organic matter and give it lots of TLC, you can shorten this establishment period. Give the clump a couple years to fully expand, and its beauty will be a thing to behold – especially in fall!
Leave it to a hardy native to fulfill our gardening dreams. Arkansas blue star is one tough perennial that’ll give your garden a fantastic show all season long, year after year – without much help from you! (That’s not too much to ask for, is it?)
