5 penstemons with purple or mauve flowers
Our selection of penstemons in purple shades, to grow in the garden or in pots.
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Perennial plants with generous flowering, penstemons bring life to the garden for many weeks in summer. Their evergreen foliage is also part of their ornamental appeal.
When it comes to colours, you will have plenty of choices, thanks to their wide palette: pink, red, blue, purple, or even yellow. While purple or violet flowers may be more subtle, they have the advantage of easily blending into the garden and highlighting more intense colours. They help create various atmospheres, from the soft and romantic to the modern or vibrant. Among penstemons, these colours range from the palest to the brightest.
Like other penstemons, they should be grown in full sun, in well-drained soil that does not retain excess water.
Here are our 5 favourite penstemons with violet or purple flowers, easy to grow in pots or in the ground.
The hybrid Penstemon ‘Gloire des Quatre Rues’: a stunning purple flowering
Between July and September, ‘Gloire des Quatre Rues’ produces beautiful bell-shaped flowers. They display a nearly purplish violet, which contrasts wonderfully with a white throat. This heart particularly captures sunlight and contributes to the brilliance of this lovely summer bicolour flowering.
This hybrid penstemon has a small bushy silhouette, reaching around sixty centimetres in height and 40 cm in spread. It is formed of lanceolate green leaves.
‘Gloire des Quatre Rues’ is quite an accommodating variety: it tolerates occasional drought, ordinary to poor soils, as well as container cultivation. Its only weak point? Severe frosts below -10°C, which it struggles to survive.
Plant it in a large container on a sunny terrace or balcony. Pair it with agapanthus, whose blue, violet, or white flowers will harmonise beautifully with those of our penstemon. To add a sparkling touch, include yellow-orange flowering montbretias, such as ‘Columbus’ or ‘George Davison’.
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Penstemon: planting, pruning and carePenstemon digitalis ‘Pocahontas’: mauve flowers highlighted by purple foliage
The Penstemon digitalis ‘Pocahontas’ is not lacking in ornamental qualities. It is primarily appreciated for its flowering. At the beginning of summer, between June and July, its lovely bell-shaped flowers resembling small foxgloves reveal a soft mauve, almost pink. They are gathered in clusters, supported by dark red stems that provide a beautiful contrasting touch.
However, the foliage is also decorative. It is initially tinged with purple before gradually turning green.
In terms of shape, this penstemon reaches nearly 90 cm in height and 60 cm in width.
Plant it in a sunny border alongside bushes, such as Deutzia gracilis or the small Deutzia ‘Yuki Cherry Blossom’. Also add a Ceanothus thyrsiflorus ‘Repens’ or a Ceanothus ‘Blue Diamond’. Together, they will create a lovely and soft harmony of colours.
Penstemon glaber: a generous flowering and colourful autumn foliage
The Penstemon glaber boasts several decorative advantages. Throughout the summer, it delivers an abundant flowering in mauve-pink to blue-violet tones, varying in intensity depending on the ambient temperature. Generous in nature, it creates a true impression of a coloured mist in the garden, thanks to its small bell-shaped flowers gathered in spikes.
The foliage is lanceolate and displays a medium green before showcasing bright red-pink hues in autumn, further enhancing the aesthetic appeal of this perennial.
Particularly easy to care for, this penstemon proves to be very accommodating. It tolerates all types of well-drained soils, including calcareous ones, is quite hardy (down to about -15°C), withstands drought, and grows almost without care. Its small, bushy, and compact silhouette reaches 40 cm in all directions. This allows it to integrate easily into the garden or in pots, brightening up balconies, terraces, or sunny urban gardens.
In a not too dry rockery, pair this penstemon with sedum with yellow or orange flowers of complementary colour, with yarrow and small agastaches (‘Poquito Lavender’ or ‘Poquito Butter Yellow’).
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Associating PenstemonsPenstemon strictus: vibrant violet flowers
The Penstemon strictus is a highly floriferous species that delights summer with its bright flowering. For several weeks, it is adorned with an abundance of small tubular flowers, showcasing a vibrant blue-purple colour.
This purple flowering stands tall above fine foliage of bright green. These lanceolate leaves contribute to giving the plant a beautiful compact and dense appearance. At maturity, this penstemon will quickly reach 60 cm in height and spread.
Fairly hardy if sheltered from winter moisture (down to about -15°C), it will also occasionally tolerate dry soil. This floriferous perennial will thrive in borders, as well as in pots. It will acclimatise quite easily in a mid-mountain garden. In any case, provide it, like its companions, with a fairly sunny exposure and perfectly drained soil.
Pair it with other floriferous perennials, such as spurge that will precede its flowering in spring. Also consider the generous gauras and small phlomis: the Russell phlomis with its contrasting pale yellow flowers or the Kashmir phlomis with its mauve-lilac flowers, all in harmony with our penstemon.
The hybrid Penstemon ‘Purple Passion’: large bicoloured purple flowers
‘Purple Passion’ certainly lives up to its name. The colour of its flowers ranges from mauve to lilac and violet. At the heart of these lovely bell-shaped flowers, a white throat adds contrast and brilliance, giving this perennial an enchanting charm throughout the summer. The flowering can even extend into autumn, renewing itself almost continuously.
This compact and bushy variety reaches about 60 cm in all directions at ripeness.
Its only drawback lies in its limited hardiness (tolerance down to around -9°C in well-drained soil), which means it cannot be grown in all regions. However, like most of its relatives, it can easily adapt to container cultivation, allowing it to be brought indoors to protect it from severe frosts in winter.
For a lovely border in shades of pink and mauve, creating a romantic atmosphere, plant this penstemon alongside dwarf roses, such as ‘Bees Paradise Pink’ or the adorable miniature rose ‘Cutie Pie’.
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