Heaven Scent Jacob's Ladder - 20-Cell Plug Tray

Heaven Scent is a Jacob's ladder with clean, fern-like green foliage flushed with deep purple in spring and early summer. In late spring, airy sprays of softly scented blue flowers rise above the leaves.

The foliage mound stays about a foot tall, with flowers reaching up to 2 feet. It makes a fine companion for hostas and fits the front to middle of a partly shaded border. It can handle more sun than most Jacob's ladders if the soil stays moist, and deer generally leave it alone.

What it looks like

Leaves are pinnate and fern-like, made of many small, oval leaflets arranged in pairs like the rungs of a ladder, in fresh green with deep purple tints, especially on new growth and stems. Loose clusters of small, cup-shaped, five-petaled flowers in soft sky blue with pale centers and white-tipped stamens are held on slender stems above the foliage. The plant forms a neat mound about 12 inches tall in leaf and 18 to 24 inches tall in bloom, 15 to 18 inches wide. At peak bloom airy blue sprays float over the purple-tinged ferny mound.

Growing it with lavender

Heaven Scent prefers afternoon shade and steady moisture, so it belongs in a shady border alongside hostas and ferns rather than out with the lavender.

Care

Grow in part shade, or in more sun only if the soil stays evenly moist, in average to fertile soil rich in organic matter. Hardy in zones 3-7. Cut back the flower stems after bloom to keep the foliage mound tidy.

At a glance

• Botanical name: Polemonium
• Flower color: Sky blue
• Foliage: Green with deep purple highlights
• Growth habit: Neat mound
• Mature size: 18–24 in tall × 15–18 in wide
• USDA hardiness zones: 3–7
• Light: full sun, part sun to part shade
• Bloom start: Mid-May
• Peak bloom: Late-May
• Bloom pattern: Single Flush
• Deer resistance: Resistant
• Pollinator value: Good

Sizes and shipping

One full 20-cell plug tray: 20 large, field-ready plugs of this variety (cells about 2¾ in. wide × 3¼ in. deep or deeper), ready to plant out or pot up. Potted plants and plug trays ship during our live-plant seasons, March 1–May 31 and October 1–November 30; June through September is local pickup only. Plugs, potted plants and trays do not ship to AZ, CA, HI, ID, NV, OR, UT or WA.