Dream Girl is a tall garden phlox with bright lilac-pink flowers and white eyes on a vigorous, dense, vase-shaped plant. It starts a little later than other garden phlox but reblooms very well, carrying color deep into the season.
At 30 to 36 inches, it fits the middle of the border and cuts well for bouquets. It resists powdery mildew, and its fragrant flowers draw butterflies, bees and hummingbirds.
What it looks like
Dome-shaped panicles are made of flat, five-petaled flowers about 1 inch across in bright lilac pink, each with a white eye. Panicles top strong stems that flare slightly outward. Leaves are lance-shaped, dark green and arranged in pairs up the stems. The plant forms a dense, vase-shaped clump about 30 to 36 inches tall and 20 to 24 inches wide. At peak bloom the upper surface of the vase is filled with pink flower heads.
Growing it with lavender
Phlox enjoys sun like lavender but wants richer soil and more regular water, so plant it in an adjacent cottage border, where its lilac-pink flowers pick up as the first lavender bloom winds down.
Care
Grow in full sun to part shade in average to fertile soil kept evenly moist; full sun and good air flow give the most flowers and the healthiest leaves. Hardy in zones 3-8. Deadhead spent flower clusters to encourage rebloom, and divide every few years in spring to keep the clump vigorous.
At a glance
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Botanical name: Phlox paniculata
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Flower color: Bright lavender pink with white eyes
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Foliage: Dark green
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Growth habit: Dense, vase-shaped clump
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Mature size: 30–36 in tall × 20–24 in wide
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USDA hardiness zones: 3–8
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Light: full sun, part sun to part shade
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Bloom start: Mid-July
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Peak bloom: Early-August
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Bloom pattern: Repeat Blooming
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Deer resistance: Susceptible
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Pollinator value: Great
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.