What are the aliases and elegant names of Penstemon?

Alternative names of Penstemon

Ivory Red

Morphological characteristics of Penstemon

Conical inflorescence, bell-shaped flowers, mixed colors. The stem is smooth, slightly covered with white powder. The whole plant is covered with fine hairs, and the leaves are lanceolate. Flowers are solitary or 3-4 borne on the leaf axils and the main peduncle, forming an irregular raceme; the corolla tube is about 2.5cm long, forming a terminal growing conical inflorescence; the flowers are purple, rose red, purplish red or white, etc., with white stripes.

A perennial herb, often cultivated as an annual, the plant is 30-50 cm. The stem is smooth, slightly covered with white powder. Leaves are opposite, the basal leaves ovate, the stem leaves lanceolate, with entire margins. The cyme panicle is terminal, the corolla is tubular and bilabiate, and the flowers are red, blue, purple, pink, etc.

Growth habits of Penstemon

It prefers an environment with ample sunlight, humid air and good ventilation; it is not cold-tolerant, and avoids hot, dry conditions and acidic soil; it must also have good drainage and a fertile sandy loam containing lime. It is slightly tolerant of semi-shade and requires well-drained soil.

Main value of Penstemon

Penstemon has bright flower colors, a long flowering period and a graceful plant form; with its vivid flowers, it is an excellent garden flower and can be used in flower beds or flower borders. It is suitable for planting in flower borders, and when combined with other blue perennial flowers, it can form a very striking color landscape. It can also be grown in pots for ornamental purposes.

There are about 250 species in the same genus; among those commonly cultivated are Penstemon cardinalis; Penstemon hirsutus, etc. The flowering period is spring and summer; it can be used in green-space flower borders and also as cut flowers for ornamental purposes.