One Phantastic Phlox

We all appreciate flowers that do well in our gardens so it’s my turn to jump on the bandwagon that one particular phlox has inspired: Phlox paniculata ‘Jeana’ is a pink, small-flowered cultivar that has been around for several years but which is more recently becoming widely available. This is the second year that it has flowered in my garden.

Eastern tiger swallowtails love 'Jeana'

This selection of Phlox paniculata was discovered by Jeana Prewitt along the Harpeth River in Nashville, Tennessee so it is native to the hot and humid South. This was not a bred hybrid and, by all indications, is a naturally occurring selection of the species. It also has good mildew resistance which is a generally a concern for cultivars of this species.

I have found that this cultivar has outstanding flower production, a long bloom time and an almost insane ability to attract pollinators, especially butterflies. During the warm part of the day, my two plants get more butterfly hits than anything else in the garden. The flowers are half the size of the species but far more numerous. From large swallowtails to small skippers, everybody wants a piece of this action.

The top section of a long panicle on 'Jeana'

Regular flower size vs. 'Jeana'

There is much discussion lately about native plant cultivars (or “nativars” as some people call them). Are these plants good for pollinators? For me, there are two discussion points to consider first:

• Is the plant a hybrid between two species?  You can recognize most hybrids by the presence of an “x” in the name or in the absence of the species name. For example, Lobelia ‘Ruby Slippers’ is a cross between the red Lobelia cardinalis and the blue Lobelia siphilitica. You will also find it documented as Lobelia x ‘Ruby Slippers’ to denote the cross.

• Or is the plant a discovery of a chance seedling or a plant with better than average qualities? If the plant was discovered in a situation (like a nursery) where it could have crossed with another species, it should be documented as noted above (with an ‘x’ or absence of species name). If it was discovered in an area where only that species was represented then it will be used with the species name (like Phlox paniculata ‘Jeana’).

By understanding this nomenclature, you can at least determine what kind of cultivar you’re getting. One of the long-term disadvantages in using cultivars is that diversity is reduced. Therefore, using a mixture of species and cultivars keeps a healthy gene pool going.

In researching 'Jeana' for this post, I came upon a master’s thesis from a student at the University of Delaware. The thesis was about evaluating cultivar vs. species in Phlox sp: "CONSIDERING A ROLE FOR NATIVE PLANT CULTIVARS IN ECOLOGICAL LANDSCAPING: AN EXPERIMENT EVALUATING INSECT PREFERENCES AND NECTAR FORAGE VALUES OF PHLOX SPECIES VS. ITS CULTIVARS." The paper is worth a deeper look (and you can find it here), but ‘Jeana’ got high marks: “In comparison to Phlox paniculata, the wild-derived cultivar ‘Jeana’ was strongly preferred by nectaring invertebrates in this experiment. Insect preference for P.  paniculata ‘Jeana’ is primarily attributable to the ease with which invertebrates are able to access nectar, through its comparative abundance of flowers and the narrowness and shallowness of its corolla tubes from opening to nectary.”

Carpenter bee on 'Jeana'

I won’t be replacing all my plants with ‘Jeana,’ but I certainly might pick up another plant or two in the future. It’s nice to have such a good performer for pollinators.

By the way, one source I found noted that the plant seems to produce infertile seed so I guess we'll just have to keep buying it. 😉