Dave's Garden - Gardening Community
Sponsored Links: Winter Landscaping - Lawn Care Tips - Mail Order Plants - Flowering Bulbs - Landscape Design - Plant Nurseries Mail Order

PlantFiles: Foxglove Penstemon
Penstemon digitalis 'Husker's Red'

 
  Welcome!  
You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!

Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.

  Login  
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.

Username:

Password:

Family: Scrophulariaceae (skrof-yoo-larr-ee-AY-see-ee) (Info)
Genus: Penstemon (PEN-stem-on) (Info)
Species: digitalis (dig-ee-TAH-liss) (Info)
Cultivar: Husker's Red

10 vendors have this plant for sale.

27 members have or want this plant for trade.

Category:
Perennials

Height:
24-36 in. (60-90 cm)

Spacing:
15-18 in. (38-45 cm)

Hardiness:
USDA Zone 2b: to -42.7 °C (-45 °F)
USDA Zone 3a: to -39.9 °C (-40 °F)
USDA Zone 3b: to -37.2 °C (-35 °F)
USDA Zone 4a: to -34.4 °C (-30 °F)
USDA Zone 4b: to -31.6 °C (-25 °F)
USDA Zone 5a: to -28.8 °C (-20 °F)
USDA Zone 5b: to -26.1 °C (-15 °F)
USDA Zone 6a: to -23.3 °C (-10 °F)
USDA Zone 6b: to -20.5 °C (-5 °F)
USDA Zone 7a: to -17.7 °C (0 °F)
USDA Zone 7b: to -14.9 °C (5 °F)
USDA Zone 8a: to -12.2 °C (10 °F)
USDA Zone 8b: to -9.4 °C (15 °F)

Sun Exposure:
Full Sun
Sun to Partial Shade

Danger:
Unknown - Tell us

Bloom Color:
White/Near White

Bloom Time:
Mid Summer

Foliage:
Burgundy

Other details:
This plant is attractive to bees, butterflies and/or birds

Soil pH requirements:
6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic)
6.6 to 7.5 (neutral)
7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline)

Patent Information:
Non-patented

Propagation Methods:
From softwood cuttings
From seed; direct sow outdoors in fall
From seed; stratify if sowing indoors

Seed Collecting:
Collect seedhead/pod when flowers fade; allow to dry
Allow pods to dry on plant; break open to collect seeds
Allow seedheads to dry on plants; remove and collect seeds
Properly cleaned, seed can be successfully stored

Click thumbnail
to view:

By poppysue
Thumbnail #1 of Penstemon digitalis by poppysue

By mystic
Thumbnail #2 of Penstemon digitalis by mystic

By poppysue
Thumbnail #3 of Penstemon digitalis by poppysue

By Wandasflowers
Thumbnail #4 of Penstemon digitalis by Wandasflowers

By Happenstance
Thumbnail #5 of Penstemon digitalis by Happenstance

By Teresa_IL
Thumbnail #6 of Penstemon digitalis by Teresa_IL

By langbr
Thumbnail #7 of Penstemon digitalis by langbr

There are a total of 19 photos.
Click here to view them all!

Profile:

13 positives
1 neutral
No negatives

Gardeners' Notes:

RatingAuthorComment
Positive shadydame On Jun 22, 2009, shadydame from North Walpole, NH (Zone 5a) wrote:

This was one of the first perennials I ever planted, and has performed consistently for each of the 3 years it has been in my garden. I love how the green foliage turns red! An excellent, low-maintenance plant.

Positive kmchitchat On May 23, 2009, kmchitchat from Euless, TX wrote:

This plant is pretty year round, but of course at it's peak in the late spring/early summer when it flowers. It's VERY drought resistant and matures nicely.

Positive CaptMicha On Jun 10, 2008, CaptMicha from Brookeville, MD (Zone 7a) wrote:

Planted in part sun. Does very well. Evergreen in winter here in zone 7. It's unfazed by our heat wave (90+ Fahrenheit daytime), drought, wet feet or humidity. The only problem is that my plants are leaning and will have to be staked.

It's June here and they're already in flower since late May.

Positive kd2000 On Nov 17, 2007, kd2000 from toronto
Canada wrote:

Beautiful plant, low maintenance, easy to transplant in spring, and very attractive to hummingbirds when in flower. Planted in mass it provides a nice early flower display and the foliage slowly darkens and reddens over the season to provide continual interest. I find the foliage of volunteers and those grown from seed are slower to redden and appear quite green initially, but darken up over time in my zone 4/5 garden.

Positive Marilynbeth On Nov 21, 2006, Marilynbeth from Hebron, KY wrote:

Beautiful plant and flowers! Love it!

Positive lego_brickster On Aug 24, 2006, lego_brickster from Lawrenceville, PA (Zone 5b) wrote:

This is an extremely durable plant. These have survived two winters potted on my second story garage roof (unheated).
They do equally well in the garden. The more sun they have, the darker the leaves get.

Positive Gabrielle On Jan 16, 2006, Gabrielle from Washington, IL (Zone 5a) wrote:

I love the contrasting colors of 'Husker's Red'. It goes nicely with so many combinations.

Positive bigcityal On Dec 10, 2005, bigcityal from Menasha, WI (Zone 5a) wrote:

Carefree plant with nice late season flowering - sort of a must have.

Positive russkiypenguin On Jul 4, 2005, russkiypenguin from Belton, MO wrote:

Planted three of them in Missouri clay soil with no improvements. Then I ignored them for a year. All three of them did wonderfully and bloomed this year.

Positive sterhill On Jun 8, 2005, sterhill from Atlanta, GA (Zone 7b) wrote:

Lovely plant - nice color even when not blooming. Last year, I cut the flower stalks back and said 'hummm - looks like these would root." I cut back each stalk so that I had a piece of stem about 3-4" long with two leaves on top and just stuck these around the garden to see what would happen. Out of about 20, I got 6 plants this year and 2 are blooming. I expect I would have more if I had used root hormone and nice little pots with good black dirt. I'll try the suggestion of using the 'non-blooming side shoots' this year. That has answered very well with the wallflowers.

Neutral daisyavenue On Sep 2, 2004, daisyavenue from Long Beach, CA (Zone 10b) wrote:

To propagate by cutting, use the non-blooming side shoots. Lower leaves should be removed and the stem placed in soil.

They can be overwintered in a cold frame using this method. Allow some ventilation on more mild days.

Positive smiln32 On May 9, 2004, smiln32 from Oklahoma City, OK (Zone 7a) wrote:

Gorgeous foliage. Nice contrast to the sedums I have nearby. Already starting to flower (May 04). It's interesting that I have three of these plants and all three are in different stages of growth. I can't seem to figure out what is causing it, either. Must be something in the soil I'm not aware of. They're all in full sun.

Positive KRISBILL On May 9, 2004, KRISBILL from Dresden, OH wrote:

GROWS VERY WELL. VERY HARDY. I DON'T THINK EATING THE PLANT IS HARMFUL BECAUSE MY
SHEEP LOVE IT!

Positive Terry On Aug 31, 2002, Terry from Murfreesboro, TN (Zone 7a) wrote:

Easy-to-grow plant, and cold hardy (at least this far north.) It's almost treasonous to grow this plant (named for the Nebraska Cornhuskers) within the geographic confines of the Southeastern Conference, but what can I say?

Regional...

This plant has been said to grow in the following regions:

Dewey, Arizona
Mesa, Arizona
Mountain Home, Arkansas
Clayton, California
Long Beach, California
Sacramento, California
Boulder, Colorado
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Denver, Colorado (2 reports)
Hotchkiss, Colorado
Centerbrook, Connecticut
Athens, Georgia
Grayslake, Illinois
Itasca, Illinois
Macomb, Illinois
Mount Prospect, Illinois
Niles, Illinois
Washington, Illinois
Yorkville, Illinois
Greenville, Indiana
Mcgregor, Iowa
Nichols, Iowa
Baldwin City, Kansas
Olathe, Kansas
Wichita, Kansas
Ewing, Kentucky
Hebron, Kentucky
Taylorsville, Kentucky
Bossier City, Louisiana
North Yarmouth, Maine
Brookeville, Maryland
Edgewater, Maryland
Haydenville, Massachusetts
Reading, Massachusetts
Springfield, Massachusetts
Belleville, Michigan
Marine City, Michigan
Mason, Michigan
Traverse City, Michigan
Minneapolis, Minnesota (2 reports)
Remer, Minnesota
Maben, Mississippi
Belton, Missouri
Lincoln, Nebraska
Carson City, Nevada
Hanover, New Hampshire
North Walpole, New Hampshire
Freehold, New Jersey
Mount Laurel, New Jersey
Pennsauken, New Jersey
Verona, New Jersey
Farmington, New Mexico
Brooklyn, New York
Buffalo, New York
Jefferson, New York
North Tonawanda, New York
Cary, North Carolina
Clemmons, North Carolina
Elizabeth City, North Carolina
Garner, North Carolina
Cincinnati, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Dresden, Ohio
Glouster, Ohio
Warren, Ohio
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Blain, Pennsylvania
Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania
Millerstown, Pennsylvania
New Freedom, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Summerville, South Carolina
Cordova, Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Sevierville, Tennessee
Belton, Texas
Desoto, Texas
Euless, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Garland, Texas
League City, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
Salt Lake City, Utah (2 reports)
Santaquin, Utah
Arlington, Virginia
Blacksburg, Virginia
Hood, Virginia
Lexington, Virginia
Newport News, Virginia
Scottsville, Virginia
Sterling, Virginia
Suffolk, Virginia
Chimacum, Washington
Clinton, Washington
Kent, Washington
Olympia, Washington
Redmond, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Vancouver, Washington
Augusta, Wisconsin
Ellsworth, Wisconsin
Holmen, Wisconsin
Lake Delton, Wisconsin
Menasha, Wisconsin
Milwaukee, Wisconsin (2 reports)
Porterfield, Wisconsin



We recommend Firefox
Overwhelmed? There's a lot to see here. Try starting at our homepage.

[ Home | About | Advertise | Mission | Acceptable Use Policy | Tour | Privacy Policy | Contact Us ]

Back to the top

Copyright © 2000-2009 Dave's Garden. All Rights Reserved.
 

NameMedia Home and Gardens
Share on FacebookShare on Stumbleupon

Hope for America