Blue Daze

Sun

Full sun for the most flowers; tolerates light afternoon shade in very hot climates.

Water

Water regularly while establishing, then let the soil surface dry between waterings. Established plants tolerate brief dry spells, but containers need more frequent watering.

Soil

Well-drained sandy or loamy soil; tolerates moderately poor soil but struggles in waterlogged clay. Use a freely draining potting mix in containers.

Height

0.5-1 ft (0.15-0.3 m)

Spread

1-3 ft (0.3-0.9 m)

Flowers

Clear blue flowers with pale centres from late spring through autumn; flowering can continue much of the year in frost-free climates.

Foliage

Evergreen. Small, oval, softly hairy grey-green leaves on branching, trailing stems.

Growth

Moderate to fast in warm weather.

Care needed

Low

• Pollinators
• Drought tolerant
• Heat tolerant
• Low allergen

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Fairly tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   0.7 ft (0.22 m)

   full size

About 2 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Safe

Growth rate

Fast

• Plant outdoors after frost danger has passed and the soil has warmed.
• Space plants about 1.5-2 ft (0.45-0.6 m) apart for groundcover.
• Water at soil level when the surface begins to dry; avoid keeping the root zone constantly wet.
• Feed container plants lightly with a balanced fertiliser according to the label; garden plants usually need little feeding.
• Keep mulch away from the crown and bring containers under cover before frost if you want to keep them.

Pruning. Pinch young shoots to encourage branching, and trim straggly stems lightly during the growing season. In warm climates, remove frost-damaged growth in spring once the risk of further frost has passed; deadheading is unnecessary.

Spring

Trim overwintered plants back to healthy growth after frost danger has passed.

Late spring

Plant outside in a sunny, well-drained position once nights are reliably mild.

Early summer

Pinch long shoots to thicken young plants and begin light feeding of containers.

Summer

Check pots regularly for dryness and trim trailing growth if it becomes sparse.

Late summer

Take tip cuttings if you want small plants to overwinter indoors.

Autumn

Before the first frost, move plants you want to keep into a bright, frost-free place.

Winter

Keep sheltered plants in strong light and water sparingly without letting the root ball dry completely.

• Trail it over the edges of sunny pots or hanging baskets beneath upright flowering plants.
• Use repeated patches along a path to create a low blue-flowered border.
• Plant as a small-scale groundcover in frost-free gardens, away from foot traffic.
• Pair its grey-green leaves and blue flowers with white angelonia or yellow lantana for a clear summer colour contrast.

Garden styles it suits: Coastal, Mediterranean, Tropical, Modern courtyard, Small-space and Florida subtropical.

Plant it with: Angelonia, Pentas, Lantana, Moss rose, Society garlic and Ornamental sweet potato vine.

Wildlife: The flowers attract small bees and other flower-visiting insects. It is not a substitute for locally native plants that support specialist wildlife.

• Root rot in wet soil: improve drainage, empty standing water from saucers and let the surface dry between waterings.
• Sparse flowering and stretched growth in shade: move the plant to a sunnier position.
• Spider mites during hot, dry weather: look for stippled leaves and fine webbing, rinse leaf undersides and use insecticidal soap if needed, following the label.
• Frost damage: protect containers before frost; plants may regrow after light frost in mild climates, but repeated or hard freezes can kill them.

Not known to be toxic to people, cats, dogs or horses. Information on ingestion is limited, and no particular toxic part is established; treat it as an ornamental rather than a food plant.

• Ground morning glory (Convolvulus sabatius)

  Also trails and bears blue funnel-shaped flowers, but its flowers are generally larger and more lavender-blue, and its leaves are greener and less softly fuzzy.

• Cape plumbago (Plumbago auriculata)

  Has clusters of pale blue, five-petalled flowers on a much larger woody shrub, rather than small funnel-shaped flowers on a low, soft-leaved mat.

Evolvulus comes from Latin meaning 'unrolled', referring to its non-twining stems, unlike those of many other members of the morning glory family.

Propagation. Take softwood tip cuttings in spring or summer and root them in a moist, freely draining propagation mix in bright, indirect light. Cuttings preserve the cultivar; seedlings may not come true.

Accepted botanical name

Evolvulus glomeratus

In the US and Canada

Introduced in the lower 48 states.

Native range

Argentina Northeast, Bolivia, Brazil North, Brazil Northeast, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast, Brazil West-Central, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Suriname and Uruguay.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.