Phlox paniculata The King

Phlox paniculata 'The King', also known as Garden Phlox or Perennial Phlox, offers abundant flowers with large panicles of a vibrant and deep shade between purple and deep blue. Generous and fragrant, this beautiful variety proves to be particularly vigorous and sturdy. Blooming all summer, and even into autumn, it also displays beautiful bright green foliage. This accommodating tall perennial, commonly found in cottage gardens, is irreplaceable in borders and simply regal in bouquets. It prefers sunny and moist soils, and sometimes requires staking.

Phlox paniculata 'The King' belongs to the Polemoniaceae family. It is an old variety, derived from Phlox paniculata, native to fertile and damp meadows in the eastern United States. 'The King' is a herbaceous perennial with a woody base, forming a vigorous and sturdy clump of leafy stems reaching 60 to 80 cm (24 to 32in) in height and 60 cm (24in) in width. The stiff and brittle stems are covered with alternate, simple, ovate and lanceolate leaves, bright green in colour. The flowering starts in early July, at the height of summer, and continues until September, provided that the faded flowers are regularly pruned. The small flowers, measuring 1.5 to 2.5 cm (1in) in diameter, have a tubular corolla of intense violet-blue colour, slightly more purplish in full light, in harmony with the throat distinctly punctuated with white-anthered stamens. They are clustered at the tips of the stems in dense and slightly fragrant panicles, which bend the stems due to their weight. The flowering is melliferous and nectariferous.

Phlox 'The King' can be planted in perennial borders, in the company of red or subtly pink blooming plants with which it forms a perfect, colourful association. Pair it with pink or blue asters, with Phlox Orange Perfection, or with other simple perennials such as sneezeweeds or large daisies (leucanthemes). Phlox are good companions for bush roses.