Blue Emerald is a creeping phlox that blankets itself with soft lilac-blue flowers in spring, making a gentle wash of color. The plant forms a low, carpet-like mat no more than about 6 inches tall.
It is easy to grow and at home in rock gardens, on slopes and along the edges of borders and paths. Butterflies and bees visit the spring flowers, and the needle-like foliage stays green through the season.
What it looks like
Small, flat, five-petaled flowers about 3/4 inch across in soft lilac-blue, with slightly notched petal tips and a small darker eye, are packed so densely that they hide the foliage. The leaves are tiny, stiff and needle-like, bright green, on trailing stems that root as they spread. The plant forms a low, dense mat about 4 to 6 inches tall and 12 to 18 inches wide. At peak bloom it is a solid carpet of pale blue-violet.
Growing it with lavender
Creeping phlox likes the same sun and well-drained soil as lavender, and its soft blue carpet makes a neat spring edging along lavender beds, blooming weeks before the lavender does.
Care
Plant in full sun in average, well-drained soil; it tolerates dry spells and dislikes soggy ground. Hardy in zones 2-9. After bloom, shear the mat back by about a third to keep it dense and tidy.
At a glance
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Botanical name: Phlox subulata
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Flower color: Lavender-blue
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Foliage: Bright green
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Growth habit: Low, spreading mat
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Mature size: 4–6 in tall × 12–18 in wide
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USDA hardiness zones: 2–9
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Light: full sun
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Bloom start: Late-April
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Peak bloom: Early-May
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Bloom pattern: Single Flush
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Deer resistance: Moderately resistant
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Pollinator value: Good
Sizes and shipping
Dormant bare-root plant, sold in boxes of 25 per variety (order in multiples of 25). Bare-root plants ship or are picked up March 1–May 31 only. They are soil-free, so they may ship to every state in that window. Dormant plants often show little or no top growth on arrival; plant or heel them in promptly.
Lavender companion · grow guide
Community Grower Report
