Stokesia laevis 'Peachie's Pick' - STOKE'S ASTER 'PEACHIE'S PICK'

Lovely late flowering nativar of Stoke's Aster, compact, non flopping, attractive for butterflies, especially yellow swallowtail butterflies.

Very dense rosettes of longer narrow leaves stay evergreen in milder climates. Forms clumps about 1.5' tall x 1-1.5' wide, large (3") fluffy coneflower-like, blue flowers from June to mid fall (especially if deadheaded).

Full sun, filtered sun, adaptable to virtually any soil (including acidic soils), medium moist to medium-dry up to dry. It likes moisture and could be grown on the pond banks, but can be problematic is the winter moisture, that can cause rotting and lead to loosing the plant.

Grows well in drier clay too.

Tolerant of drought, heat and humidity.

This cultivars was discovered in the 80's as a garden seedling of Mississippi florist and gardener Peachie Saxon, and was named after her. This vegetative cultivar soon became popular for it's compact, non flopping habit and also for non-seeding (like the wild forms can do), and became horticulture industry standard, which all the other stoke's asters are judged.

Hardy in zones 5 to 9. Species of Stokesia laeavis is native to coastal states from North Carolina to Louisiana and grows naturally in moist, but drained soils (sandy soils).

Attracts butterflies and pollinators, host plants for caterpillars of several moths, deer and rabbit resistant.

Best for the front of the sunny flower bed, or even at the smaller pond, if the soil is drained. Can be used as cut flower, looks the best in small groups. Good with Echinacea, Achillea, Agastache, Amsonia, summer blooming Allium, Asclepias tuberosa, Aster, Baptisia, Calamintha, Coreopsis, Gaura, Knautia, Liatris, shorter cultivars of Monarda, Monarda bradburiana, Nepeta, Oenothera, Penstemons, Platycodon, shorter, Rudbeckia, Salvia nemorosa hybrids, tall Sedum, Solidago, Stachys, Vernonia lettermannii, Veronica spicata hybrids, Yucca, and grasses like Bouteloa, Muhlenbergia, Sporobolus, Schizachyrium scoparium, or shorter cultivars of Panicum.

Picture copyright : cultivar413, Flickr

Pot size : square 3.5" x 5" deep pot