Chelone obliqua 'Alba'

Chelone obliqua 'Alba': White Turtleheads Happy in the Muck

Big white hooded flowers in dense spikes, like a choir of turtles in matching robes. 'Alba' is the crisp, clean take on a classic, and it plans on sticking around a long time. LONG-LIVED AND WELL DRESSED.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Chelone obliqua 'Alba'
• Common Name: White Turtlehead
• Height: 60–90 cm (2–3 ft)
• Spread: 45–60 cm (18–24 in)
• Flowers: Large, hooded white flowers in dense spikes at the stem tips
• Bloom Time: Late summer to early fall (August to September)
• Foliage: Glossy, dark green, toothed leaves on an upright, bushy clump
• Features: Long-lived, tolerates wet and clay soils

Where to Plant: Turtlehead is perfect for rain gardens, pond and stream edges, and low spots that stay moist, and it also does fine in a regular border with decent moisture. The white flowers brighten a part-shade bed in late summer, when many perennials have finished.

Companion Plants: Plant white 'Alba' in a moist to wet bed in sun or part shade with lilac and cream-striped partners. Heuchera FYRE WING™ 'Spinel' adds colourful foliage at 18 cm. Physostegia 'Crown White' brings white obedient plant spikes at 50 cm from July to September. Hibiscus Summerific® 'Lilac Crush' opens lilac blooms at 150 to 165 cm in July and August. Deschampsia 'Northern Lights' edges the bed with cream-striped blades at 30 to 40 cm.

Plant Care: Plant in rich, moist to wet soil. It tolerates clay and a wide range of pH. In full sun, keep the soil consistently moist; in part shade it is more forgiving. Mulch helps hold in moisture in summer. Pinch the stem tips in late spring if you want a shorter, bushier plant. Cut the stems back in late fall or early spring. It's long-lived and slowly forms a wider clump. Divide in spring if you want more plants.

History: Rose turtlehead is native to moist woods, swamps and streambanks of the eastern and midwestern United States, and its usual colour is rosy pink, so 'Alba' is the white-flowered form. Chelone comes from the Greek word for tortoise, for the turtle-head shape of the flowers.

Final Thoughts: Wet soil and clay are welcome. Bumblebees and butterflies too. ONE PLANT, MANY TENANTS, ZERO EVICTIONS.