A beautiful Pacific Northwest native and superb plant for the rock garden, Penstemon richardsonii var. richardsonii forms a somewhat woody-based perennial with upright stems clothed in glossy, deeply toothed to cutleaf foliage. In late spring through summer, the stems are topped with showy tubular flowers ranging from bright pink and lavender to reddish-purple, often marked with contrasting lines inside the throat.
Native from southern British Columbia through Washington and into north-central and northeastern Oregon, this penstemon is naturally found in cliff crevices, talus, rock slides, and other dry, rocky sites. Its affinity for exposed, sharply drained locations makes it particularly well suited to crevice gardens, rock walls, screes, and gravel gardens. The tubular flowers are pollinated by a diverse range of visitors, including bumblebees, native bees, flies, wasps, and hummingbirds.
Give it full sun and very sharp drainage. Once established, it is remarkably tolerant of drought and poor, rocky soils. Hardy to approximately Zone 5–9.
A beautiful Pacific Northwest native and superb plant for the rock garden, Penstemon richardsonii var. richardsonii forms a somewhat woody-based perennial with upright stems clothed in glossy, deeply toothed to cutleaf foliage. In late spring through summer, the stems are topped with showy tubular flowers ranging from bright pink and lavender to reddish-purple, often marked with contrasting lines inside the throat.
Native from southern British Columbia through Washington and into north-central and northeastern Oregon, this penstemon is naturally found in cliff crevices, talus, rock slides, and other dry, rocky sites. Its affinity for exposed, sharply drained locations makes it particularly well suited to crevice gardens, rock walls, screes, and gravel gardens. The tubular flowers are pollinated by a diverse range of visitors, including bumblebees, native bees, flies, wasps, and hummingbirds.
Give it full sun and very sharp drainage. Once established, it is remarkably tolerant of drought and poor, rocky soils. Hardy to approximately Zone 5–9.
