With its spotted, fern-like foliage and charming purple flowers in spring, Fernleaf Phacelia is a beautiful addition to gardens and natural landscapes alike. As a biennial plant, each plant lives for just two years. In the first year, plants put up tidy mounds of interesting, dappled leaves, with flowers arriving only in the second year. However, this unique life cycles makes Fernleaf Phacelia perfect for filling in bare spots among shade perennials and shrubs as it will spread by seed into gaps and openings in your shade garden, filling them with vibrant purple blooms in May. Collect the seeds when they've dried and spread this plant to other parts of your garden even further afield for a great spring weed suppressor and pollinator magnet.
Conditions: Part shade to full shade; moist to occasionally wet, well-drained soil
Size: 1’ - 3’ tall, 1' - 2’ spread
Zone: 5 - 8
Wildlife Value: Flowers support various pollinators, including pollen specialist bees
Photos: David Korbonits, Samantha Nestory, Benjamin Szmidt