• Image of Tradescantia pallida 'Blue Sue'|Juniper Level Botanic Gdn, NC|JLBG

    Photo by JLBG taken at Juniper Level Botanic Gdn, NC

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Tradescantia pallida 'Blue Sue'

Blue Sue Spiderwort

This plant is not currently for sale. This is an archive page preserved for informational use.

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Item #: 7269

Zones: 7b to 10b, at least

Dormancy: Winter

Height: 18" tall

Culture: Part Sun to Light Shade

Origin: Mexico

Pot Size: 3.5" pot (24 fl. oz/0.7 L)


Tradescantia pallida 'Blue Sue' is a north Florida pass-along plant that went from plantswoman Sue Watkins of Tallahassee, Florida, to perennial guru Allan Armitage, who was so taken with it that he named the plant after Sue. Tradescantia pallida 'Blue Sue' is an excellent deciduous groundcover from Zone 7b south that thrives in most garden conditions from sun to light shade. The 2" wide x 5" long glaucous blue leaves clasp the upright dark purple stems which, in turn, form an 18" tall x 5' wide patch in 10 years. With any sun exposure, the leaves also showcase a lovely purple border. Starting in late June (NC), the stems are adorned with small, diurnal lavender flowers emerging from the leaf axils. This is truly a durable groundcover that's great for underplanting around open shrubs and roses.