PlantFiles: Appleblossom Grass
Gaura lindheimeri 'Siskiyou Pink'

I tried to grow this plant a few times but it never survived our Northeast winter in zone 5a.

I have this planted in both full sun and partial shade. It's healty and doing well in both locations, but it seems to bloom much better in the sun. Very dainty pretty plant!

I got really lucky with this beautiful plant. I bought three of them at Walmart this spring not knowing what they were. I planted them in a spot they LOVE and they are gorgeous! I trimmed them back about a month ago when the blooms tapered off and now they are blooming beautifully again.

I love this plant! The more heat, the better it blooms. I have gaura planted in an area without sprinklers, so they only get water from a hose every other week. I think "Siskiyou Pink" is by far the prettiest of the gauras (the white ones tend to get lost among other plants). I also think gaura looks best when several are planted together. Bees seem to love them too!

My only concern is that some of the pinks appear to revert to white. I cut off the white blooms before they seed.

By the end of a LONG bloom-filled summer, the plants can look a little ratty. That's when I cut them back hard for a rest, and then watch the plants bounce back better than ever.

Although I usually find gaura at small nurseries, the big home stores never seem to carry it. But, I always ask Home Depot and Lowes to stock it. I'm sure that many gardeners would very much enjoy gaura, if they could reliably find it at these plant centers.

I recently found and planted a variegated gaura with pink blooms.

Stands up to intense heat and blooms all summer and fall in West Texas.

This wonderful drought-tolerant plant is also known as "Whirling Butterfly" as is evidenced when the winds blow, twirling the flowers so that they look like fluttering butterflies. Spectacular and a real eye-catcher. Bees and butterflies benefit from it, too!

They are now found in most home improvement center garden areas, as surprisingly, many FL nurseries don't carry them. Very hardy -- I planted mine in late January in Zone 9 and they are continually full of blooms. Likes full sun and establishes very quickly.

One caution: may be prone to aphids. Due to major infestation and ladybugs not yet available; homeopathic methods not being strong enough, was forced to treat with Bayer's systemic insect control which quickly solved that problem, thereby saving the plant. Not catching and resolving this problem quickly results in rapid plant decimation.

(San Antonio, Tx.)
This clump forming perennial has foliage turns several different colors throughtout the year. At the beginning of spring, they are a maroon. The new leaves then turn green, then green with maroon edges and mottling. The blooms appear on racemes and they open a few at a time ensuring blooms over a long period of time. The deep maroon buds provide attractiveness even when no blooms are open. Be sure to plant them in well drained soil because sogginess will kill the plant. Trim back the plant in midsummer to keep the plant compact and encourage more blooms. Deadhead spent blooms also. Although it is stated above that the plant can be propagated by dividing the rootball, this is difficult to do because it has a taproot. It does not like to be moved. Severe injury to the taproot may kill the plant. It can be propagated by softwood or basal cuttings in the spring or by planting seeds.

This plant bloomed for 6 solid months in my garden. Wonderful.

This cultivar originates from the Siskiyou Rare Plant Nursery in Oregon, USA.

It has rose pink flowers and dark green leaves with red veining. A very pretty cultivar which seems to have a neater habit than the species.

Deadhead to prolong flowering.