Sweet Trailing Phlox Phlox nivalis
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- FLOCKS nee-VAL-is
- Description
-
This native perennial does well in the mountains, piedmont, and coastal plains of North Carolina. It flourishes in hot, well-drained sites, especially in the sandhill and dry habitats of central North and South Carolina. It has a tight 6 inch-tall evergreen mat of shiny, stiff, needle-like foliage with showy pink flowers that appear for a few weeks in spring.
Trailing Phlox is a tough and hardy groundcover that is different from other species of Phlox in that it is semi-woody.and favors more acidic soil.
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- Snowdrift
White flowers
- Snowdrift
- Snowdrift
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
-
- Snowdrift
White flowers
- Snowdrift
- Snowdrift
- Tags:
-
-
Attributes:
- Genus:
- Phlox
- Species:
- nivalis
- Family:
- Polemoniaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Division
- Seed
- Stem Cutting
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- North America
- Distribution:
- Virginia south to Florida and west to Texas
- Wildlife Value:
- Attracts hummingbirds
- Play Value:
- Attractive Flowers
- Defines Paths
- Wildlife Food Source
- Dimensions:
- Height: 0 ft. 6 in. - 0 ft. 8 in.
- Width: 1 ft. 0 in. - 1 ft. 3 in.
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-
Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Ground Cover
- Herbaceous Perennial
- Native Plant
- Wildflower
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Mounding
- Spreading
- Texture:
- Fine
-
-
Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasionally Dry
- Available Space To Plant:
- 12 inches-3 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
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Fruit:
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Spring
- Summer
- Fruit Type:
- Capsule
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- a three-valved, three-chambered, egg-shaped capsule with one to three, relatively large (to 6 mm long), ellipsoid seeds per chamber
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-
Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Pink
- Purple/Lavender
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Cyme
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Shape:
- Star
- Flower Petals:
- 4-5 petals/rays
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Purple to pink or nearly white flowers, with a darker colored tube and center, radially symmetric, with a slender tube, and abruptly spreading lobes.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Glossy
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Opposite
- Whorled
- Leaf Shape:
- Linear
- Leaf Margin:
- Entire
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 3-6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Description:
- It has a tight 6 inch-tall evergreen mat of shiny needle-like foliage.
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-
Stem:
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- The sterile stems are trailing, decumbent, finely glandular-hairy, and somewhat woody, while the flowering shoots are more erect.
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-
Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Container
- Hanging Baskets
- Slope/Bank
- Landscape Theme:
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Native Garden
- Design Feature:
- Border
- Mass Planting
- Small groups
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Hummingbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Drought
- Dry Soil
- Heat
