フロックス：フロックスの花を植え、育て、手入れする方法

Phlox: How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Phlox Flowers | The Old Farmer's Almanac How to Grow Phlox: Planting & Care Guide for Phlox Flowers Photo Credit: Pixabay Botanical Name Phlox Plant Type Flowers Sun Exposure Full Sun Partial Sun Shade Bloom Time Spring Summer Flower Color Blue Pink Purple Red White Special Features Attracts Butterflies Attracts Songbirds Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener July 11, 2025 Share Sign up for daily gardening advice and tips Email Address Looking to add a pop of color that butterflies love but deer won’t touch? Meet phlox—your new favorite flowering perennial. Whether it’s the candy-colored carpet of creeping phlox in early spring or the fragrant, tall blooms of garden phlox in summer, this versatile bloomer brings beauty to beds, borders, and everything in between. Ready to grow a garden showstopper that doesn’t mind a little shade or sun? Let’s dig into how to plant, grow, and care for phlox! About Phlox “Phlox is a genus with a great diversity in growth form, with a height varying between 3 to 6 inches for Phlox subulata to 5 feet tall for Phlox paniculata . They may grow in a low, mounding form, a spreading woodland phlox or tall, upright phlox,” explains the North Carolina Cooperative Extension. These perennials sport copious star-shaped, colorful flowers from spring through summer, depending on the variety. Because there are so many types (many of which are native to North America), you can find a phlox for almost any garden. Truly, their versatility can’t be overstated. Low-growing Creeping Phlox works great as ground cover in sunny yards. Ankle-high Woodland Phlox i s perfect for dappled, shady beds. Medium-height Garden Phlox is often the ‘backbone’ of the perennial garden, providing a layer of color midway through the garden and filling in gaps. Tall Garden Phlox are excellent as a colorful backdrop with large flower clusters, and they are often fragrant. Bees, butterflies, and pollinators also adore Phlox. And fortunately, phlox is deer-resistant , as deer do NOT like smelly flowers! Read Next 20 Easy Perennial Flowers for Beginner Gardeners Planting Alliums: How to Grow Ornamental Onions for Stunning Spring Blooms 10 Low-Maintenance Groundcover Plants for Slopes, Shade, & Sun Planting Because there are so many different types of phlox, sunlight requirements vary. Tall garden phlox do best in full sun, while woodland species thrive in partial shade. (See Recommended Varieties , below, for more information!) In general, phlox prefer soil that is nutrient rich and evenly moist. They do not like to sit in wet soil, however. Use a garden fork or tiller to prepare your garden bed prior to planting. Loosen the soil to about 12 to 15 inches deep, then mix in a 2- to 4-inch layer of compost to improve soil consistency and fertility. When to Plant Phlox Plant phlox in the spring after the threat of frost has passed , or plant in the fall at least a month before your first frost. How to Plant Phlox It is easier to grow phlox from cuttings/transplants than from seeds, although established plants will readily spread by seed in the garden. Space plants according to their mature size. If you are transplanting a plant from a pot, dig a hole about twice the size of the pot’s diameter and place the plant so that the top of the root ball is even with the soil’s surface. Fill in around the root ball, and remember to water it thoroughly. Growing If you receive less than 1 inch of rain a week, remember to regularly water your plants throughout the summer. Each spring, put a thin layer of compost and a 2-inch layer of mulch around the plants to help keep the soil moist and control weeds. Remember to remove the dead/faded flowers so that your plants can rebloom. Try out the Chelsea Chop! If you have tall phlox, cut the stems back to about 1 to 2 inches above the soil after the first killing frost in the fall. ( See local frost dates .) Divide tall garden phlox every 2 to 3 years to ensure healthy and disease-free plants. Pests and Problems Powdery mildew is common; keep proper air circulation in mind when spacing out plants and avoid getting excess water on the foliage. Cutting back stems after flowering can also help to reduce the spread of powdery mildew, as can choosing mildew-resistant varieties. Stem canker Rust Southern blight Stem nematodes Leaf spots Leaf miners Caterpillars Types You just can’t go wrong with phlox! Here are some of the best species and varieties to try: Low-Growing Phlox Creeping phlox or moss phlox (Phlox subulata) is a low-growing species that works excellently as a ground cover. It spreads slowly, growing in mounds that get 4–6 inches thick. The whole plant turns into a carpet of color in spring, when flowers cover every square inch of foliage. This phlox is particularly stunning when allowed to drape over a rock wall—imagine a waterfall of color! Creeping phlox grows best in well-draining soil and partial to full sun. ‘Candy Stripe’ is a popular variety with pink-and-white–striped flowers. ‘Emerald Blue’ produces a sea of lilac-blue flowers (perfect for that waterfall of color!). Creeping phlox (P. subulata) has needle-shaped leaves and produces a carpet of flowers. P. stolonifera , which also goes by the common names creeping phlox and moss phlox , is similar to P. subulata in name only. The main differences between it and P. subulata are that its leaves are oval-shaped (rather than needle-shaped), and its flowers are produced on stems that rise 6–10 inches above the foliage (rather than directly on the foliage). It prefers a shadier growing site with rich, evenly moist soil. ‘Sherwood Purple’ is a delicate little phlox with purplish-pink flowers. Woodland phlox or blue phlox (P. divaricata) is another low-growing species. As its two common names suggest, it prefers partial to full shade and moist, rich soils and produces bluish flowers in early spring. Like P. stolonifera , its flowers bloom on stems that rise about a foot or so above the creeping foliage. ‘Chattahoochee’ and ‘Blue Moon’ are two great varieties with beautiful blue-to-violet flowers. Blue phlox. Phlox divaricata. Credit: L Lauzuma Medium-Height Phlox Annual phlox or Drummond’s phlox (P. drummondii) grows as an annual rather than a perennial, unlike most other phlox species. Annual phlox rarely grows taller than 2 feet in height. Most varieties are not very heat tolerant, but in warmer regions, you may find the heat-tolerant varieties for sale. Plant in well-draining soil in a site that gets partial sun and doesn’t stay too wet. Tall Phlox Garden phlox or summer phlox (P. paniculata) is the tallest phlox in cultivation and is probably the species that most folks have in their gardens. It grows in clumps that reach between 3 and 5 feet in height and produces panicles of flowers in mid- to late summer. Though tolerant of most lighting, it grows and flowers best in partial to full sun. It has a reputation for being very susceptible to powdery mildew, but resistant varieties are available. ‘David’ has bright white flowers and is resistant to powdery mildew. ‘Jeana’ , another mildew-resistant variety, produces panicles of petite purplish flowers—similar in appearance to a butterfly bush . Other Phlox The phlox listed above are just a few of the many species out there. Others of interest to gardeners may be Carolina phlox (P. carolina) , meadow phlox or spotted phlox (P. maculata) , and sand phlox (P. bifida). Wit and Wisdom April’s full Moon has traditionally been called the “ Full Pink Moon ” because it heralded the appearance of the “moss pink,” or wild ground phlox—one of the first spring flowers. Medium and tall phlox are good companions for summer perennials such as lilies, bee balm, rudbeckia, Shasta daisies, yarrow, and clematis. Flowers About The Author Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener Catherine Boeckmann is the Executive Digital Editor of Almanac.com, the website companion of The Old Farmer's Almanac. She covers gardening, plants, pest control, soil composition, seasonal and moon c... Read More from Catherine Boeckmann More Like This 20 Easy Perennial Flowers for Beginner Gardeners Planting Alliums: How to Grow Ornamental Onions for Stunning Spring Blooms 10 Low-Maintenance Groundcover Plants for Slopes, Shade, & Sun Late-Season Garden Blooms: How to Grow and Care for Asters How to Grow Astilbes: Fluffy Blooms for Shady Gardens Easy Roses to Grow: A Beginner’s Guide to Rose Bushes Comments Add a Comment <span>Helen Ida Moyer</span> Tue, 07/22/2025 - 22:46 Reply A deer came into my garden while we were gone the first two weeks in June and literally ate all of the hosta, day lily buds, and the garden phlox which is just now recovering and starting to bloom, as well as the roses, hardy geranium and annual geranium! We live in the woods and have never been bothered by deer before as our split rail fence and four foot vinyl fence seemed to confuse them with the double row of fence... Reply to comment × <span>Otter Dreaming</span> Tue, 07/22/2025 - 08:32 Reply Deer may not like scented flowers, but that leaves a huge part of the season when deer are glad to mow them down, including right up to the time just before the phlox would otherwise bloom. Phlox FLOWERS may be deer-resistant; the plants themselves must be delicious. Reply to comment × <span>Linda Hennessey</span> Tue, 07/22/2025 - 06:39 Reply I grow Phlox, (David) in my garden. The very first year I had beautiful flowers - that is, until the deer came a'callin. The flowers were GONE - chewed right off. I learned to spray my Phlox with a deer deterrent which works well. Reply to comment × <span>Kaycy Conley-Gay</span> Tue, 08/06/2024 - 13:36 Reply My phlox seem to be finished with blooming. Should I deadhead to reinvigorate blooming since in Mid-Michigan we may have 2 more months of summer weather? Reply to comment × <span>Roger Smith</span> Fri, 09/20/2024 - 17:10