Longfellow's Greenhouses Online Plant Guide

Description:

Wow, this is one showy plant, with its succulent creamy white sword-like leaves with green margins radiating from the center of the plant, pinkish in fall; the tall spire of nodding bell-like flowers in summer is a daring bonus, loves dry soils and sun

Ornamental Features

Color Guard Adam's Needle features bold spikes of creamy white bell-shaped flowers rising above the foliage from mid to late summer. Its attractive sword-like leaves are creamy white in color with distinctive green edges. As an added bonus, the foliage turns a gorgeous pink in the fall.

Landscape Attributes

Color Guard Adam's Needle is an herbaceous evergreen perennial with a more or less rounded form. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other garden plants with finer foliage.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cut back to the ground in late winter before active growth resumes. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Spiny

Color Guard Adam's Needle is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Color Guard Adam's Needle will grow to be about 18 inches tall at maturity extending to 3 feet tall with the flowers, with a spread of 24 inches. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 20 years. As an evegreen perennial, this plant will typically keep its form and foliage year-round.

This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil, and will often die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This is a selection of a native North American species.