Ruellia are North American members of the Acanthaceae family, and a genus that offers a wide array of often-overlooked garden plants. We have selected several garden-worthy ruellias that we think you'll enjoy.
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In the arctic regions north of Zone 7, ruellia make great flowering annuals or container plants. In the South, Ruellia are long-flowering and easy-to-grow additions to any garden. Ruellia flowers look very much like petunias, but the rest of the plant looks nothing like a petunia. Ruellia flowers come in a variety of colors including white, pink, purple and red that attract butterflies. In warm, moist subtropical locations, ruellia will re-seed heavily and is weedy. We do not recommend that gardeners in the Deep South plant Ruellia. We see some seedlings in our Raleigh, NC garden but do not consider Ruellia to be weedy here. When you're ready to buy ruellia for your containers or perennial garden, check out our online list of ruellia for sale below.
Since 1988, Plant Delights Nursery has been the choice of serious gardeners and plant collectors looking for the best and rarest perennial plants. We are pleased to have received the Perennial Plant Association Retail Award in 2011, the American Horticulture Society Commercial Award in 2002, and to have been selected as one of the Best Mail Order Plant Sources - Garden Design Magazine 2010. Welcome to our family of plant lovers!
Ruellia 'Chi Chi' is a dynamite ruellia from Texas...a seedling selection of Ruellia brittoniana from plant guru Scott Ogden. The narrow, dark green foliage clothes the 2' tall stem, topped with 1" pink petunia-like flowers, from early summer through fall. Ruellia 'Chi Chi' has performed well in both moist and dry conditions. Everyone who sees 'Chi Chi' wants to take her home...perhaps they've been watching too many soap operas on the Spanish Channel. Arriba! We do not recommend these for tropical or semi-tropical moist climates where they grow and multiply too well. Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
This Color Spot Nursery release is a hybrid from Texas plantsman, Greg Grant. Forming a tight dwarf clump like Ruellia 'Katie' (8" tall x 12" wide), Ruellia 'Colobe Pink' is smothered with 1.5" wide flowers of scrumptious pink. For us, Ruellia 'Colobe Pink' flowers from midsummer until fall...a perfect candidate for both color bowls and special spots throughout the garden. Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
Katie Ferguson of Texas found this dwarf form of our native ruellia, and it took Texas by storm, although nothing like the really big storms such as Ike, Brett, and Alicia. Ruellia 'Katie' makes a 6" tall x 12" wide clump with lance-shaped green leaves. All summer, it is covered with 1.5" purple flowers. In good soil, it will reseed true. This is one fabulous plant! Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
Finally, we are pleased to present the long-awaited, white-flowered counterpart to the ever-popular Ruellias 'Katie' and Ruellia 'Colobe'! Boasting the same compact habit as regular 'Katie', this new selection makes a 1' wide clump that is topped from July until frost with 1.5", saucer-shaped, white flowers against the dark green, linear foliage. Ruellia 'White Katie' is a great summer bedding plant where winter hardiness is an issue. Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
Ruellia elegans is an amazing plant with a large native range from Chile to Brazil. While some of the selections in the trade are not winter-hardy, we have been thrilled with Ruellia 'Ragin' Cajun'. Our 3-year-old deciduous clumps are now 4' tall x 8' wide...what we call in the South, "big honkers." Ruellia 'Ragin' Cajun' is topped from June through frost with terminal clusters of 5-petaled, bright scarlet-red flowers. For us, this has proven amazingly easy to grow but performs best in rich moist soils. Our plants came from Logee's via Dupont Nursery. Pot Size: 3.5" (24 fl. oz/709.77 ml)
.jpg "Epimedium wushanense (Wushan Fairy Wings)")
.jpg "Ruellia elegans 'Ragin' Cajun' (Ragin' Cajun False Petunia)")