Penstemon is a perennial shrub or subshrub crop. The plant is native to North and Central America. The flower belongs to the genus Noricaceae, although foreign botanists classify it as belonging to the plantain family, of which there are over 250 species.
General information
The Latin name of the plant translated into Russian sounds like “almost a stamen.” Due to the fact that the flower has one sterile stamen of a bizarre shape, protruding far beyond the petals, and in England penstemon is called “bearded tongue”, due to this feature.
This crop is still rare for our gardens. But due to its brightness and unusual appearance, they are beginning to grow it in our climate zone. The plant blooms in early June and flowering lasts for two to three months. It is not difficult to grow it, the main thing is to follow the advice of experienced gardeners and then the plant will delight you with its bright flowers every spring.
Penstemon varieties and types of photos with names
- is a herbaceous bushy perennial with straight stems and lanceolate dark green leaf blades. The height of the crop reaches 1.2 meters. Flowers can be either tubular or bell-shaped. They are collected in paniculate inflorescences, having white, red, lilac, pinkish and other colors. The plant blooms from early to late summer.
– the culture reaches a height of up to 1 meter. The inflorescences are large, light pink. The flowering time of the plant occurs at the beginning of summer and lasts for a month. The variety is frost-resistant and can withstand winter without insulation.
– this variety is distinguished by abundant and early flowering. The height of the bush reaches up to 90 centimeters. The inflorescences have an unusual color - they are white on the inside and scarlet on the outside. Flowering time begins in May and lasts until the end of July.
– the plant was bred relatively recently. It is characterized by frost resistance and abundant flowering. The leaf blades are dark burgundy, lanceolate in shape. Pale pink flowers are collected in paniculate inflorescences. The culture reaches a height of up to 70 centimeters and blooms throughout the summer.
– the height of the crop reaches 60 centimeters. The leaf blades are bright green and lanceolate in shape. The stems are thin and woody. Inflorescences are paniculate, purple in color. This variety blooms from July to October.
Externally, the variety resembles the snapdragon flower. The plant reaches a height of up to 70 centimeters. The inflorescences are large, collected in unusual racemes. Shades of flowers can be white-scarlet, orange, red and purple. Flowering time lasts from mid-summer until the first frost.
- a low-growing herbaceous perennial, reaching a height of up to 30 centimeters. The leaf blades are medium-sized, lanceolate, green. The inflorescences are small and lilac in color. The plant blooms from early summer to mid-autumn.
– the plant reaches a height of up to 70 centimeters and has dark burgundy leaves and stems. The inflorescences are white, racemose with a pleasant aroma. The crop blooms from June to the end of August.
– the stems of the plant reach a height of up to 90 centimeters. The flowers are small, resembling bells of a pinkish-lilac hue. The leaf blades are lanceolate in shape and light green in color. The plant blooms from June to September.
– the herbaceous perennial reaches 70 centimeters in height. The leaf blades are lanceolate, green-brown in color. The inflorescences are whitish-pink, racemose. Flowering time lasts from May to October.
It is a spectacular annual, reaching a height of up to 80 centimeters. The leaf blades are dark green, lanceolate with a sharp tip. The flowers are small, bell-shaped, blue and light purple. The culture blooms from June to September.
- is a low-growing, bushy perennial, reaching a height of up to 30 centimeters. The leaves are dark green, lanceolate with slight pubescence. The flowers are small, resembling a purple bell in appearance. The flowering time of the plant is in summer.
– the variety is short-growing and reaches a height of up to 45 centimeters. The leaves are dark green with a sharp tip. The inflorescences are racemose, long, bicolor, white-blue or white-red. The culture blooms from July to September.
– The bushy perennial reaches a height of up to 70 centimeters. The leaves are dark green, medium-sized with a pointed end. The inflorescences are large, bicolor white-red, white-pink and white-burgundy. The crop blooms throughout the summer.
– a low-growing variety, reaching a height of up to 20 centimeters. The bush has lush, dark green foliage and pubescent, lanceolate leaf blades. Racemose inflorescences of a pale lavender hue. Flowering time is from June to August.
The plant has large light green leaf blades with a sharp end and tall stems reaching 120 centimeters. The inflorescences are large, racemose. They are white, white-pink, white-violet, white-red and white-purple.
– a perennial crop reaches a height of up to 70 centimeters and has large leaf plates with a pointed end of a dark burgundy hue. The inflorescences are bell-shaped in white, pink, purple and red. The flowering time of the plant is in the summer.
- a low-growing plant with long, narrow leaf blades of a dark olive hue. The inflorescences are dense, reminiscent of snapdragons, of a rich sky blue color. The flowering time of penstemon falls in June and lasts until September.
– this variety of penstemon reaches a height of up to 60 centimeters and has dark burgundy leaf blades with a narrow end. The inflorescences of the culture are racemose, pinkish-white. The flowering time of the plant lasts all summer.
– the crop reaches a height of up to 80 centimeters and has tall woody stems. The leaves of the plant are green, with a sharp end. The flowers are large, cream-colored, with a purple center and streaks. The plant blooms from June to September.
– the height of the crop reaches up to 30 centimeters. Stems are straight, woody, with dark green lanceolate foliage. The inflorescences are large, bright yellow, blooming luxuriantly. Penstemon flowering time lasts from June to August.
Penstemon planting and care in open ground
Penstemon is a light-loving plant, for this reason the area for planting it should be chosen well lit, but drafts must be avoided. The soil for the crop should be light with good drainage.
The plant can be planted in open ground either by seedlings or by seeds. To grow seedlings, you should take a container with fertile soil and sow seeds in it in February, digging them a little into the soil and moistening the soil with a spray bottle. The seeds must be sprinkled with fried sand on top, then re-moistened, covered with film and put in a warm, sunny place for germination.
In two weeks the first young plants will begin to appear. In order for penstemon to germinate faster, the temperature in the greenhouse should be maintained at least + 20 degrees, ventilated once a day and monitor soil moisture.
When the first leaf blades appear, the young plants need to be planted in peat pots. At the end of May, the plants must be transferred to open ground, taking care of the soil and drainage in advance. It is also necessary to take into account the fact that the earlier the plants are planted in the garden, the later they will begin to bloom.
Torenia is also a member of the Norichnikov family. It can be grown with care at home without much hassle if you follow the rules of agricultural technology. You can find all the necessary recommendations in this article.
Watering penstemon
The flower needs regular watering, which is especially important if the summer is dry. However, you need to ensure that the soil has time to dry out between waterings.
To ensure that the water does not stagnate and the root system can “breathe,” when planting young trees, care should be taken for good drainage in the form of a layer of coarse sand or fine expanded clay laid at the bottom of the planting hole.
To reduce the frequency of watering, you should mulch the soil around the plants with compost or dry peat. Also, after each watering, the soil needs to be loosened and weeds pulled out.
Soil for penstemon
The soil for the crop should be chosen with high acidity, nutritious, well-drained and loose.
For this purpose, garden soil is mixed with compost, peat, sand or fine gravel. In order to achieve the desired level of acidity, charcoal is added to the soil.
Penstemon transplant
To prevent the plant from losing its decorative properties, it should be replanted every five years. Usually transplantation is carried out in the spring, by bush division. For this purpose, take an adult plant, carefully dig it up and divide it into parts, trying not to damage the root system.
After this, the resulting cuttings are transferred to a new bed, not forgetting to create a drainage layer. When the plants are planted, the soil should be lightly pressed, watered and mulched. The plant's adaptation time takes about a month.
Penstemon fertilizer
The first feeding as compost is mixed into the soil when planting young animals. Organic fertilizers are applied to the bushes three times a season.
Before flowering, experienced gardeners recommend using complex mineral fertilizers with a high phosphorus content. With its help you can enhance flowering and influence the decorative characteristics of flowers.
Penstemon flowering
The plant blooms in June and can last until the end of summer or until the first frost. Everything will depend on the variety. The flowers of the culture may look like bells or snapdragons.
Mostly, the buds are collected in dense large clusters of white, pink, blue, red, purple, orange, yellow, and there are also varieties with two-color colors. After flowering, seeds begin to form, which are used for propagation of the crop.
Penstemon pruning
The plant only needs drastic pruning in late autumn in preparation for winter.
During the growing season, it is necessary to remove wilted leaves, stems and inflorescences, as well as thin out overgrown shrubs.
Preparing penstemon for winter
Some varieties of penstemon in our climate zone are grown as perennials due to their southern origin. In preparation for winter, perennials are cut at the root and covered with a layer of dry foliage or spruce branches.
To prevent snow melting in the spring from causing the root system to become wet, the plant must be provided with good drainage when planting and the snow mass must be removed from the planting site every spring when it begins to melt.
Penstemon growing from seeds
The most common method of propagating penstemon is to grow the plant by seed. Seeds can be purchased at the store or collected yourself after they ripen.
If you grow penstemon from seeds, then sowing them should be done either in the fall or in the spring, when the threat of frost has subsided. Sow the seeds immediately in open ground, sprinkled with a small layer of soil.
Some species require stratification, such as alpine penstemon. To do this, they can be sown before the winter, in October-November, in open ground, but it is safer to sow them in a container, barely sprinkled with sand or soil on top.
The container with the sown seeds is first kept in a room at room temperature for about three weeks; the seeds swell in moist soil and warmth. Then cover the container with one layer of lutrasil and take it out into the garden.
Lutrasil on the container must be secured in any convenient way, for example, it is tied with an elastic band around the pot, otherwise it will be carried away by the wind - this cover is made so that weed seeds do not get into the container with the sown seeds with the wind.
The container is left in the garden for at least two months, where they undergo natural stratification during the cold season. If there is snow on the ground, the removed container is completely covered with it - melted snow water has a beneficial effect on seed germination.
In the spring, a bowl with crops is brought into a greenhouse or room for germination. The first shoots may appear within ten days. Some seeds bloom already in the year of sowing.
Penstemon propagation by cuttings
To obtain planting material, shoots that do not have flowers should be cut off. Then they must be treated with a root formation stimulator and placed in moist soil in a shaded area of the garden bed, covered with half a plastic bottle.
Once roots have formed, the cuttings can be planted in a permanent growing location.
Penstemon propagation by layering
Climbing and low-growing varieties are suitable for rooting by layering. For this purpose, bend the outermost shoot to the ground and sprinkle it with soil.
In a month, roots will appear on the layering and then it will need to be separated, dug out of the ground and transplanted into a prepared hole.
Penstemon propagation by dividing the bush
This propagation method is used during transplantation. To obtain planting material, an adult plant must be dug up, the root system must be cleared of soil and the bush must be divided into several parts. Then each division should be planted in a separate hole in a permanent place of growth.
It is important to note that only those plants that are already three years old are suitable for propagation by bush division. If you divide earlier, they will die.
Division for the purpose of rejuvenation is carried out every five years. It is not worth abandoning the procedure, as the crop begins to age, ceases to form new shoots, cease to bloom, and ultimately loses its decorative effect.
Diseases and pests
Most often, when growing this crop, gardeners are faced with drying of the tops of the penstemon . If such a problem is discovered, you should trim the penstemon at the root. Refusal of such a radical measure will lead to the death of the plant. After pruning, it will quickly recover and produce new shoots.
When the soil is heavily flooded and water stagnates in the root system, gray rot develops, which makes itself felt by wilting of plant stems . To save penstemon, it is necessary to loosen the soil and water the crop with a fungicide solution.
Since the plant is not interested in pests, there is no need to be afraid of their invasion.
Conclusion
Growing a plant is not difficult. Even a novice gardener can cope with this task. The culture is moderately capricious, it is easy to propagate and it can grow quite successfully in our climate zone.
It is for this reason that every gardener who loves beautiful, bright and unusual plants is simply obliged to have at least one specimen of penstemon in his garden.
This perennial ornamental flowering plant of the Noricaceae family has more than 250 different species. Among them there are both erect and creeping varieties. Some species, mostly hybrids, are cultivated as annual crops. The beginning of the penstemon flowering period often occurs at that transitional time when spring flowers have already faded, and later ones are just gaining buds. Large penstemon flowers, having the shape of bells and collected in an inflorescence resembling a panicle, look great in group plantings in flower beds, ridges, alpine 
slides in combination with other flowering plants of yellow, orange or white color. You can grow penstemon in, its stems, densely covered with flowers, will hang down advantageously. Penstemon is also grown for cutting; it perfectly decorates prefabricated bouquets, although it does not live in this form for very long. By the way, regular cutting of flower stalks contributes to the successful wintering of the plant.
Grow penstemon from seeds, which are sown for seedlings in February - March, without being buried in the ground, since the seeds need sunlight for germination. There are species that are recommended to be sown before winter, for example, Penstemon hirsutus. If you preliminarily cold stratify the seeds, this will contribute to their better germination. The soil for sowing must be moist, otherwise the seeds will not be able to germinate. The crop is covered with a 3-mm layer of sand, previously disinfected with boiling water, and covered with film or glass. At a temperature of 18 – 24 °C, the seeds will germinate in about two weeks. After the sprouts appear, it is recommended to reduce the ambient temperature to 15 °C and grow the seedlings in small peat-humus pots. This will guarantee earlier flowering, which usually occurs in July and lasts until September. Picking is carried out after two full-fledged leaves are formed on the sprouts. Seedlings are planted in open ground at the end of May, maintaining a distance of 30–35 cm between individual bushes. At the same time, earlier transplantation of penstemon to a permanent place contributes to its later flowering. Propagate penstemon by seeds It’s quite simple, and it often self-sows.
Most perennial penstemons do not live long, about three to four years. Therefore, plants must be regularly updated by cuttings or growing new bushes from part of an adult plant. In the latter case, dividing the bush is carried out at the very beginning of spring, before the active growth period begins. Plants are cut after young shoots appear on them; it is advisable to do this around mid-summer. Cuttings are taken from shoots that have no flowers and planted in a greenhouse. The stems of penstemons of creeping varieties take root independently in places of contact with the ground. These rooted parts can be used to propagate the plant. To prevent such penstemon from growing excessively, it must be trimmed regularly.
Penstemons not very capricious, but, nevertheless, they require careful treatment. They are grown in warm, well-lit areas, protected from cold winds. Under the influence of winds and rains, penstemon may lose its delicate inflorescences. The soil for planting is light, neutral or well fertilized with rotted organic fertilizer. It is good if a sufficient amount of gravel or coarse sand is added to the substrate. It is imperative to take care of good deep drainage so that water does not stagnate near the roots and the plant does not get wet in winter. Excessive dampness causes penstemon much more harm than severe winter frosts. Watering should be regular, more abundant in hot weather. The roots of the plant should never dry out. Regular mulching will help avoid evaporation of moisture from the root layer of the soil. During the season, it is necessary to feed the plant twice a month with a complete complex fertilizer. It is imperative to loosen the soil around the bushes and cut off dried flower stalks in a timely manner. For the winter, it is recommended to cover perennial varieties with a 15 cm layer of foliage or spruce branches, after cutting off the ground part of the plant. Some species cannot tolerate temperatures below minus 10 °C. With successful wintering on penstemon, green foliage is retained until spring.
Sometimes the tops of the plant dry out, which can result in the death of the entire bush. To stop the spread
There are two main ways of growing seeds: by seedling method or directly into the ground. Each method requires selecting high-quality seeds. Some varieties of seeds need to be planted before winter, while more capricious ones require a lot of sunlight. It is enough to sow some varieties in the period February-March; you don’t even need to cover them with a layer of soil on top. But often those varieties that are grown by seedlings are sown on plots.
Penstemon sowing rules
Some tricks will allow you to get penstemon abundant flowering.
Before growing penstemon, use the cold stratification method. Then the germination of planting material will be good.
Sow seeds in moist soil. Seeds will not germinate without moisture.
When the penstemon seeds appear in the ground, they should be covered with sand in a layer of no more than 3 mm, covered with glass or film. First pour boiling water over the sand - this will disinfect it.
At this stage, provide the seeds with a temperature of 18-24 degrees. Then after one or two weeks you can expect the first shoots.
As soon as you notice the first sprouts, slightly reduce the temperature to 15 degrees. Then grow it in peat pots. This is an effective method of ensuring abundant flowering in the future.
When two leaves form on the sprouts, start picking. By the end of May it should get stronger and the ground should warm up, so you can plant the plant in the ground. Maintain a distance of 30 cm between seedlings.
With this growing method penstemon flower from July to September. If you start work 1 month earlier, flowering will occur later, its intensity will be significantly lower.
Among Russian flower growers, perennial penstemon is not yet very well known, but due to its bright decorative qualities, it is gaining popularity. It is already actively used to decorate summer cottages, as well as to create landscape compositions.
The flower has a huge number of species and varieties. Among penstemons there are both annuals and perennials plants. Penstemon is native to Central and North America.
Penstemon perennial is a plant with a straight stem tall from 20 to 120 cm.
It has bright green smooth leaves and multi-colored bright inflorescences collected in a panicle that look like a bell.
Bells, depending on the variety, can be white, pink, bright red, or lilac. The abundance of completely different colors of inflorescences adds decorative value to the flower when grown.
Winters well in the middle zone and blooms from July to September.
Growing penstemon from seeds
This method can be divided into seedling propagation and sowing seeds directly into open ground.
When sowing in the ground seeds are planted either in the fall or at the end of May, beginning of June, when the earth warms up sufficiently. It should be taken into account that when sowing in open ground, it is not always possible to achieve good seed germination.
Growing seedlings
In March, the seeds are sown in prepared boxes with soil. For normal development, penstemon needs well drained soil. Therefore, a layer of expanded clay is placed at the bottom of the box. The top of the soil is sprinkled with a layer of river sand.
The seeds are carefully placed on the surface of the soil, watered and covered with glass or film to create a greenhouse effect.
To germinate, seeds need plenty of sunshine and temperature 18-22 degrees. In addition, the seeds need to be regularly watered and ventilated. After the sprouts appear and get a little stronger, they need to be transplanted into peat pots.
After picking, the seedlings need a slightly lower temperature, +15 degrees.
You can plant seedlings in open ground at the end of May, when there is no longer any danger of a sharp drop in temperature.
Popular types of pestemon for the garden
Bearded is a fairly tall herbaceous perennial, with a racemose inflorescence that blooms in June and continues to bloom for 1-1.5 months. The inflorescence is formed by bright red or pink flowers.
Brilliant - a flower of average height for penstemons. Reaches approximately 25 cm. A plant with long leaves and large blue or purple inflorescences. It is frost-resistant and begins to bloom.
Foxglove
Foxglove is practically the tallest species. Grows up up to 120-130 cm. It has large lanceolate dark green leaves. Winter-hardy species. The inflorescences are large, collected in a panicle. Flowering begins in June.
Alpine - small perennial, flowering from late May to July. The dense inflorescences of bells can be blue, blue or purple. For a long time without replanting it does not lose its decorative qualities.
Can grow in one place for up to 5 years.
Coarsehair is a compact plant whose bushes only 15 cm in height. It has pubescent dark green leaves and a reddish peduncle. Numerous inflorescences are usually white or lilac. Abundant flowering lasts up to one and a half months.
Planting rules
It is preferable to plant in open ground grown and strengthened sprouts penstemons. Seedlings are planted in the second half of May. The sprouts are planted in moist soil sprinkled with sand. The distance between the bushes is approximately 30 cm.
If the sprouts are planted in the ground too early, they will take a long time to take root and adapt to the new place. Therefore, it will bloom later.
Flower care
Penstemon must be placed on well lit areas. The plant is light-loving. The flower prefers light, well-drained soils and fairly abundant watering.
Plant does not tolerate stagnant moisture. This leads to rotting of the roots.
It is necessary to periodically loosen the soil and apply it three times a season. Penstemon can be fertilized with both organic and complex mineral fertilizers. This will allow you to achieve more luxuriant flowering.
The flower should not be placed in windy areas. Penstemon doesn't like wind.
Plants for the winter trim and cover to protect against severe frosts. You can use leaves or spruce branches.
Diseases and pests
Penstemon very disease resistant. Excessive watering can lead to the development of fungal diseases. In this case, it is necessary to treat the plant with a suitable fungicide and adjust the watering.
Sometimes the top of the plant begins to dry out. Timely pruning of the bush will help solve this problem.
Penstemon is still a rather rare guest in garden plots. But thanks highly decorative the plant has already found its admirers and is gaining popularity among gardeners and designers.
Looks great on verandas, grows well in outdoor flowerpots, and is a bright decoration of alpine slides. Penstemon is also suitable for cutting. Although the flower does not last long, the bouquets look very beautiful.
Penstemon is new to garden plots. But thanks to its unpretentiousness and beauty, the plant gains more and more friends and fans every season. After all, with just a little effort you can get amazing beauty at your summer cottage.
Penstemon is a flower native to North America, but recently the flower culture has become quite familiar on the Euro-Asian continent. The plant is very decorative: a tall bush with peduncles, at the end of which there are bright flowers collected in brushes. All amateur gardeners who have seen amazingly beautiful flowers would like to start cultivating the plant in their garden. They are interested in the question: how to grow penstemon?
Penstemon: planting and care
The most popular is the perennial penstemon. Growing penstemon from seeds requires a lot of work and patience.
In order to increase germination, it is recommended to keep the seeds in a cold place for a month before planting. Penstemon seeds are sown in late February - early March. Plant the seeds almost on the surface of the soil so that the developing plant receives more sunlight. The seeded material is sprinkled with a little sand on top, moistened and covered with cellophane to create a greenhouse. The room in which the plantings are kept must be warm (about +22...+25 degrees) and light, then the first shoots will hatch by the end of the second week.
Once the sprouts appear, the film can be removed and after a few days the seedlings can be transplanted into peat pots. Now the air temperature should be lower, preferably +14...+17 degrees. If these measures are followed, you can expect the plant to bloom earlier. After two true leaves appear, the plantings are planted. They are planted in open ground depending on the climate zone: from mid-May to the end of May. In this case, you should maintain a distance between the bushes of approximately 35 cm. Considering the special sensitivity of penstemons to winds and weather changes, it is better to choose a well-lit place for the plant, protected from all sides. The soil should be neutral, rich in humus. For better growth, coarse sand or gravel can be added to the ground, since the plant does not tolerate stagnation of moisture in the roots.
Care includes regular watering, weeding and protecting the plant from excessive evaporation of moisture on hot days. Approximately twice a month it is necessary to fertilize penstemon with complex fertilizers. To maintain a decorative appearance, dried flower stalks should be periodically removed. A phenomenon often observed is when the top of the plant dries out. To prevent the bush from dying, you should cut off the diseased part of the stem or even trim the entire plant so that healthy shoots appear. But the falling of flowers in rainy and windy weather is normal. New flowers constantly grow in place of fallen ones.
Penstemon is also propagated by cuttings. In August it is cut, and the rooted cuttings are stored at a temperature of +3...+7 degrees. The plant is planted in spring. Penstemon from cuttings blooms almost a month earlier than flowers grown from seeds.
Preparing penstemons for wintering
Many types of penstemons cannot tolerate temperatures below – 10 
degrees, so it is recommended to provide shelter for flower plantings for the winter. To do this, the ground part of the plant is cut off and a rather thick layer of spruce branches or foliage is created. If wintering was painless for the plant, then the green foliage on the remaining part of the bush should remain until spring.
Using penstemons
The plant blooms from July until autumn frosts, decorating the place of growth with its long inflorescences. Penstemon can be planted in rows, surrounded by low flowers (marigolds, ageratum, etc.), or in a mixborder in groups. Cut penstemons look great both in mono bouquets and in combination with other flowers.
