Phacelia sericea (Silky Phacelia)

A magnificent plant for a dry rockery, Phacelia sericea (Silky Phacelia) is a long-lived perennial boasting short cylindrical clusters densely packed with purple flowers with long, conspicuous, purple stamens and yellow anthers. Resembling a bottle brush, the clusters are often coiled like the tail of a scorpion. Attractive to bees, they emerge in early-mid summer from a basal rosette of deeply cut leaves that are covered with silky hairs, giving the plant a silky, silvery look. This handsome wildflower has a special talent: it is a hyperaccumulator that is able to grow in soils with high concentrations of heavy metals. Its roots absorb metals, which are accumulated in concentrations 100 to 1,000 times higher than in the soil. Silky phacelia hyper accumulates gold. But no one is likely to get rich off harvesting phacelias. Easy to grow, Silky Phacelia adds charming purple-blue color to the wildflower garden or rock garden.

• Grow up to 4-16 in. tall (10-40 cm) and 12 in. wide (30 cm).
• Thrives in part sun in well-drained soils.
• Low maintenance and highly disease and pest free, this plant is also drought tolerant.
• An excellent choice for cottage gardens, rock gardens, wildlife gardens, or prairie gardens.
• Contact with skin may cause irritation
• Native range from southern Canada to northern California, Utah, and Colorado