Penstemon smallii (Small's Beard Tongue)

Small's Beard Tongue (Penstemon smallii)

Height, Spread: 2-3 ft, 1-1.5 ft

Water/Soil: Average-occasionally dry, well-drained, loam, sand, shallow rocky, acidic-neutral soil, will not thrive in wet soil. 

Light: Full sun-part shade

Bloom: Summer, pink, purple, or white tubular blooms

Native Range: Southeastern USA, primarily in the southern Appalachians

Qualities: Attractive to pollinators, Host plant, moderately deer resistant, drought tolerant

Notes: Rare herbaceous perennial wildflower commonly found in rocky bluffs or woodland margins in the NC mountains. Attractive to hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies, and is a host plant for the Common Buckeye butterfly (Junonia coenia). Best used in a rock garden or a pollinator garden as a border plant.