Luminary® Backlight is a tall garden phlox carrying crisp, neatly shaped heads of pure white flowers on a full, tidy plant. White is one of the most requested phlox colors, and it brightens the midsummer border and glows in the evening.
The dark green leaves resist powdery mildew even in hot, humid weather. At 28 to 30 inches, it fits the middle of the border and pairs well with other white flowers in a moonlight garden. It reblooms, and the fragrant flowers draw butterflies and bees.
What it looks like
Well-defined, dome-shaped panicles are made of flat, five-petaled flowers about 1 inch across in pure white. The panicles top sturdy, upright stems of even height. Leaves are lance-shaped, dark green and arranged in pairs along the stems. The plant forms a tidy, upright clump about 28 to 30 inches tall and 20 to 24 inches wide. At peak bloom crisp white heads cap every stem above dark green foliage.
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 white 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: Pure white
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Foliage: Dark green
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Growth habit: Tidy, upright clump
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Mature size: 28–30 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: Early-July
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Peak bloom: Late-July
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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.