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Wallflower

Erysimum (er-RIS-ih-mum HY-brih-dah)

Family: Brassicaceae Unknown Herbaceous (1-3 ft)

Wallflower is a low-growing mounding herbaceous perennial or biennial with showy long-blooming flowers. In the south they are grown as a cool-season annual. They are generally short-lived and often treated as biennials. The hybrids come in many colors and were bred for longer bloom times. The showy flowers bloom during the summer in clusters of pink, orange, yellow or red. Plant in average to sandy soil in full sun. It is drought tolerant once established and deer resistant. Used in rock gardens, the front of the border, along walkways or in containers.

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 51 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft) Optimal soil pH Acid (<6.0); Alkaline (>8.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Herbaceous Perennial
Life cycle
Biennial; Perennial
USDA zones
5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b, 11a, 11b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Loam (Silt); Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Alkaline (>8.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Occasionally Dry
Available space
Less than 12 inches; 12 inches-3 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 0 ft. 6 in. - 1 ft. 0 in. | Width: 1 ft. 0 in. - 1 ft. 6 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Mounding
Texture
Medium
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Linear; Oblanceolate; Pinnatifid
Leaf margin
Entire; Lobed
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Deep green lower leaves are sessile, linear to oblanceolate, pinnatifid with backwardly directed lobes. Stem leaves are linear and entire.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; Orange; Pink; Red/Burgundy
Flower value
Fragrant; Good Cut; Showy
Flower form
Raceme
Flower shape
Star
Flower detail
Yellow, red, orange or pink 4-petaled flowers in racemes from mid-spring to mid-summer have a honey fragance.
Bloom time
Spring; Summer
Fruit color
Green
Fruit type
Siliqua
Fruit detail
Dry, capsule that split open when ripe, siliques.
Stem color
Green; Purple/Lavender
Stem detail
Winged hairy stems
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Wildlife value
Attracts hummingbirds.
Food & Medicine
Fruit type
Siliqua
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Container; Patio; Rock Wall; Walkways
Landscape theme
Cutting Garden; Drought Tolerant Garden; Rock Garden
Design feature
Border; Mass Planting
Garden tags
#rock garden #border front #mass planting #HS302 #showy flowers #yellow flowers #orange flowers #biennial #pink flowers #easy to grow #nectar plant early summer #low maintenance #drought tolerant #flowers mid-summer #nectar plant late spring #deer resistant #full sun tolerant #garden walls #flowers mid-spring #walkway
Problems & Resistance
Problems
Short-lived
Resistant to
Deer; Drought

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.