Native Plant Database

From the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb
Size Notes: 1-1.5 feet.
Flower:
Fruit:
Size Class: 1-3 ft.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: Purple
Bloom Time: Mar , Apr , May , Jun

Distribution

USA: AR , LA , MS , TX
Native Habitat: Gulf Coast prairies and marshes. Moist sand, loam, clay. Poor drainage okay.
USDA Native Status: L48(N)

Growing Conditions

Water Use: Medium
Light Requirement: Sun , Part Shade
Soil Moisture: Moist
Soil Description: Clay, Clay Loam, Medium Loam, Sandy Loam, Sandy.
Conditions Comments: Tiny purple blooms adorn Gulf Coast Penstemons flower spikes like little bells. This species makes a fabulous cut flower. Grows well in moist perennial beds and borders. Has the potential to reseed freely. It is a good to plant in combination with yellow columbine, which has the same requirements and bloom period.

Benefit

Use Ornamental: Showy, Blooms ornamental, Color, Long-blooming, Garden, Perennial garden
Use Wildlife: Nectar-Bees, Nectar-insects, Nectar-butterflies
Conspicuous Flowers: yes
Attracts: Hummingbirds
Nectar Source: yes

Value to Beneficial Insects

Special Value to Native Bees

This information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Propagation

Propagation Material: Seeds
Seed Collection: Collect seed in summer.
Commercially Avail: yes

Find Seed or Plants

Order seed of this species from Native American Seed and help support the Wildflower Center.

From the National Organizations Directory

According to the species list provided by Affiliate Organizations, this plant is either on display or available from the following:

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - Austin, TX
Texas Discovery Gardens - Dallas, TX
Native Plant Society of Texas - Fredericksburg, TX
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department - Austin, TX
NPSOT - Austin Chapter - Austin, TX
NPSOT - Williamson County Chapter - Georgetown, TX, TX

Bibliography

Bibref 355 - Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas and the Southwest (1991) Miller, G. O.
Bibref 318 - Native Texas Plants: Landscaping Region by Region (2002) Wasowski, S. & A. Wasowski
Bibref 291 - Texas Wildscapes: Gardening for Wildlife (1999) Damude, N. & K.C. Bender

Search More Titles in Bibliography

Recommended Species Lists

Find native plant species by state. Each list contains commercially available species suitable for gardens and planned landscapes. Once you have selected a collection, you can browse the collection or search within it using the combination search.

View Recommended Species page

Additional resources

USDA: Find Penstemon tenuis in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Penstemon tenuis in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Penstemon tenuis