Product Field NotesCompanion Plants
Web Designer Spiderwort: Big Blue Triangles That Last into Fall
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Web Designer spiderwort carries some of the largest blue flowers you will find on a spiderwort: clear medium blue triangles about 2 inches wide, with fuzzy blue filaments and yellow-tipped stamens at the center. They open from bud clusters at the stem tips above a lush, tidy clump of thick, wide, arching leaves.
Many spiderworts fade out in summer heat. This one stays fresh and keeps blooming well into fall.
Web Designer at a glance
| Trait | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Botanical name | Tradescantia 'Web Designer' |
| Flowers | Clear medium blue, about 2 inches, yellow stamens |
| Foliage | Thick, wide, strap-like, medium green |
| Size | 18 to 24 inches tall and wide |
| Bloom | Starts early June, peaks late June, continues into fall |
| Hardiness | USDA zones 3 to 9 |
| Light | Full sun to shade |
| Deer | Moderately resistant |
Where it fits with lavender
Spiderwort is adaptable about light but particular about water. It wants richer, moister soil than lavender and even tolerates damp spots, which lavender cannot. That makes it a natural for the parts of a property that lavender would hate: the low corner where rain collects, the bed by the downspout or a partly shaded strip along a fence.
Its clear blue is a cool partner to lavender's purple, and the bloom timing overlaps nicely. Web Designer starts in early June and peaks in late June, right as lavender comes into color, then keeps going long after. Its grassy, arching leaves add a different texture than lavender's fine mounds. Sketch the wet and dry zones in the Companion Plant Planner.
A blue-and-purple duo
Web Designer pairs beautifully with its sister, Webmaster, which has warm purple flowers with a soft lilac edge. Plant the two together in a moist border for a blue-and-purple combination that mirrors your lavender beds from across the yard.
Care notes
- Soil: average to fertile, with regular moisture.
- Each flower: lasts a day, but the clusters keep opening for weeks.
- Midsummer refresh: if foliage yellows, flops or looks tired, cut it back hard, by about half, for a fresh flush of leaves and flowers.
- Problems: few. Occasional leaf spot, rust or gray mold on spent flowers, and slugs on young growth.
- Winter: fully hardy. Cut foliage to the ground in late fall or early spring.
Formats offered
Web Designer comes as a full 72-cell plug tray for growers, rain garden projects and native plantings, and as a bare root plant for home borders. See each product page for current availability.
Frequently asked questions
Why do the flowers close in the afternoon?
Each spiderwort flower lasts about a day. New ones open from the bud clusters, so the show continues.
Can it grow in shade?
Yes. It adapts to sun or shade, as long as the soil stays reasonably moist.
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