A Shade-Loving Perennial You Should Consider Planting In Your Pollinator Garden

Shady gardens can be a wonderful place to sit and enjoy the outdoors during the summer when everything is in full bloom and the pollinators are out. If you have a shady garden space or backyard, there are many different trees, flowers, and plants available that thrive in shade such as foxglove and hostas, two great perennials that will brighten shaded areas of your garden. You can attract even more wildlife to your garden by adding just the right types of flowers known to attract bees, hummers, and other pollinators. A lovely example of a perennial you should consider adding to your garden is red turtlehead (Chelone obliqua). Other common names for this pretty, shade-loving plant include pink or rose turtlehead, shellflower, and twisted shell flower. 

These beautiful flowers are hardy and durable, so if you're new to gardening, you might try your hand, especially if you have good shady spots in your yard. They do really well in shaded areas but if the soil stays moist they can handle full sun if necessary. You and the pollinators that frequent your garden can enjoy these bright pink blooms from late summer to fall when most other flowers are done blooming for the season. Hummingbirds and bees love this flower so if you are interested in making all the bees come buzzing to your garden, this is a flower that will help get the job done.

If you've ever wondered how some of these flowers get their names, this lovely flower got its rather odd moniker from the resemblance its blooms have to a turtle's head. Interestingly, the genus name of Chelone comes from Greek mythology. Because the water nymph Chelone skipped Zeus and Hera's wedding, she and her house were thrown into a river. The result was she morphed into a turtle, carrying her house on her back. A pretty interesting back story to this unusual plant name for sure!

Red turtlehead is an easy plant to grow and doesn't require a ton of care or upkeep once the plants are established. If you live in wetter southeastern states like southeast Georgia and Florida you will have great success. If you've been able to determine your plant hardiness zone it helps: red turtlehead thrives in zones 5 through 9. They thrive in shaded conditions but can handle full sun for a few hours each day. You can expect your red turtlehead plants to grow about 2-3 feet tall. Keep them on the shorter side when they are mature by pinching the stem ends each spring, especially if they are grown in heavily shaded areas where they can flop over if they get too tall. Propagate these lovely, versatile pink flowers by growing from seeds in the early spring, dividing the plants in springtime, or taking cuttings in late spring or early summer.