Obedient Plant (Physostegia virginiana)

Obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana), or false dragonhead, is a very fun plant that has some very unique qualities. The common name comes from the flowers’ unique pliable nature: the flower heads can be pushed from side to side along the stem, and they will remain wherever they are moved. This makes the plant very useful for cut flowers or flower arrangements. The flowers are a pale lilac with a tubular shape and snapdragon appearance that grow on terminal spikes. The flower spikes bloom from the bottom to top from late June to September. Obedient plant has sharply toothed, lanceolate leaves arranged in an opposite manner. The square stems can reach up to 4 feet but may fall over if the soils are too rich or it is not receiving enough sun. Be aware that this plant can spread rather aggressively either by seed or rhizomatously (it is not obedient in that way). To prevent this, a gardener can pull up the undesired shallow roots to keep the plant tamed.

Obedient plant lives in a wide variety of habitats from open meadows to stream banks. It is native to much of North America from Quebec to Florida and even west to New Mexico. This plant can tolerate moist soils with poor drainage or soils on the drier end of the spectrum. The nectar of this plant is desirable to many species of butterflies and even attracts hummingbirds. Overall, obedient plant is excellent and can really give a show in the late summer to early fall, especially if used in a rain garden.