Luminary® Pink Lightning brings bright true pink flowers with a white starburst in the center, and its individual flowers are the largest in its group. It opens in midsummer with intense color.
The foliage has stayed free of mildew into September in trials, so it looks clean well into fall. At 30 to 36 inches, it is a strong focal point for the middle of the border and a good cut flower. It reblooms, and pollinators visit steadily.
What it looks like
Large, dome-shaped panicles are made of flat, five-petaled flowers larger than typical garden phlox, in bright true pink with a white starburst pattern radiating from the center. The panicles top sturdy, upright stems. Leaves are lance-shaped, medium to dark green and arranged in pairs up the stems. The plant forms an upright clump about 30 to 36 inches tall and 24 to 30 inches wide. At peak bloom vivid pink heads with white centers cover the top of the plant.
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 bright 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 true pink with a white starburst center
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Foliage: Medium to dark green
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Growth habit: Upright clump
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Mature size: 30–36 in tall × 24–30 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.