The Plant Store is now closed for 2023 and will re-open for sales in May of 2024

  • Please see the Using the Plant Library  page  for some tips on how to make the most of the information here to select species for creating a healthy native plant community suited to the conditions of your site.

Penstemon hirsutus, Hairy Beardtongue

Penstemon hirsutus

Hairy Beardtongue

  • Full sun to light shade
  • Average to dry soils
  • 18" to 24" tall and wide
  • Early Summer Blooms
  • Garden, meadow and woodland settings

This dainty wildflower steals the show every June in my urban Ottawa garden. Perfectly tidy, clump forming and blooming for 3 to 4 weeks, they fit equally well into conventional flower gardens and into low wildflower meadows. Their foliage and seed heads remain tidy through the summer and their foliage turns brilliant red in late autumn. Even seed saving is simple with the pods holding the tiny seeds through the drying stage when they can be clipped and upended into a container, falling free of the pods without any extra coaxing.
Prefers a sunny location and average soil and moisture. Grows to between 18" and 24" tall and wide.


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Species that were not sown / aren't being sown for 2023 are marked with an * 
Species that are native to this continent, but not historically native to Ontario are marked with a ~ 
While it rarely comes up, I do reserve the right to limit plant quantities, mostly to help ensure that as many native plant gardens as possible become a reality
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