Fashionably Early Flamingo is a tall hybrid phlox with neat panicles of light pink flowers with a soft lilac cast. It blooms two to three weeks earlier than typical garden phlox, flowering freely through much of July and often adding a few more blooms in fall.
The broad, thick, bright green leaves resist mildew and stay attractive all season. At 30 to 36 inches, it belongs in the middle to back of a sunny border, where it spreads slowly by underground stems. Pollinators visit it often.
What it looks like
Well-defined, dome-shaped panicles are made of flat, five-petaled flowers about 1 inch across in light lilac pink. The panicles sit atop strong, upright stems. Leaves are broad, lance-shaped, thick and leathery, in bright green, arranged in pairs along the stems. The plant forms an upright, slowly spreading clump about 30 to 36 inches tall and 26 to 30 inches wide. At peak bloom soft pink flower heads cap every stem.
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 soft pink flowers pick up as the first lavender bloom winds down.
Care
Plant in full sun for the best flowers, or part shade, in average to fertile, well-drained soil with regular water. Hardy in zones 4-8. Shear spent flower heads after the first flush to encourage more blooms later, and give it room for air to move, which helps keep the leaves clean; it spreads slowly by underground stems.
At a glance
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Botanical name: Phlox
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Flower color: Light lavender pink
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Foliage: Bright green
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Growth habit: Upright, slowly spreading clump
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Mature size: 30–36 in tall × 26–30 in wide
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USDA hardiness zones: 4–8
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Light: full sun, part sun to part shade
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Bloom start: Mid-June
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Peak bloom: Early-July
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Bloom pattern: Long 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.
Lavender companion · grow guide
Community Grower Report
