Use & Care NotesCompanion Plants
Opening Act Romance Phlox: A Low Lilac-Pink Dome for the Front Row
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Opening Act Romance phlox has an unusually low, wide, nearly dome-shaped habit for a hybrid phlox: about 20 to 22 inches tall and up to 3 feet across. Rich lilac-pink flowers, each with a small white halo at the center, cover the dome evenly two to three weeks before tall garden phlox begins.
Its color sits right next to lavender on the color wheel, so it looks at home beside a lavender planting. It just wants richer soil and more water than lavender, so give it a neighboring border.
Romance at a glance
| Trait | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Botanical name | Phlox Opening Act Romance |
| Flowers | About 1 inch, rich lilac pink with a small white halo |
| Foliage | Glossy dark green, resists mildew and leaf diseases |
| Size | 20 to 22 inches tall, 32 to 36 inches wide |
| Bloom | Early summer, 2 to 3 weeks before tall phlox; reblooms when sheared |
| Hardiness | USDA zones 4 to 8 |
| Light | Full sun to part shade |
| Wildlife | Butterflies, bees and hummingbirds |
A front-row phlox
Tall garden phlox usually goes at the back of a border. Romance is built for the front. Its low dome shape means it can sit at the edge of a cottage bed next to the path, where you can see the white halos up close. Beside a lavender planting, try it at the front of the richer border that runs alongside the lavender, so the lilac-pink domes and the lavender's purple spikes are seen together at the same height.
It is wide, so space plants about 3 feet apart. A row of three or four makes a soft, continuous wave of color. Plan the spacing in the Companion Plant Planner.
How to shear for a second bloom
When the first flush fades, take hand shears and cut back the flowering stems to just above a set of healthy leaves, removing all the spent clusters. It takes a few minutes per plant. New flowering shoots form from the leaf joints, and the dome blooms again later in the season. The same afternoon is a good time to give your lavender its post-harvest trim.
Planting and care
- Soil: average to fertile, well drained. Mix in compost before planting.
- Water: regular watering; do not let it dry out in summer.
- Airflow: it resists mildew, and room around each plant keeps the leaves cleaner still.
- Spreading: it spreads slowly by stolons; divide in spring if needed.
- Bare root: set the crown just at the soil surface and water in well.
Plug tray or bare root
Romance is offered as a full 72-cell plug tray for growers and long borders, and as a bare root plant for direct planting. See each product page for current availability, or the Wholesale Hub for tray orders.
Frequently asked questions
How early does it bloom?
It opens two to three weeks before tall garden phlox, in early summer.
Can it go right in the lavender bed?
It is happier in a richer, more regularly watered border beside the lavender. Lavender's lean, dry soil would leave it struggling.
Does it attract hummingbirds?
Yes. Butterflies, bees and hummingbirds all visit the flowers.
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