Polemonium 'Purple Rain'

Polemonium 'Purple Rain': Moody Dark Foliage, Spring's Best Accessory

New leaves come up almost black, then turn green through summer like somebody slowly brightened the screen. Violet stars on dark stems finish the look. 'Purple Rain' IS THE ONLY FORECAST WORTH WAITING FOR.

Plant Characteristics:

• Botanical Name: Polemonium yezoense var. hidakanum 'Purple Rain'
• Common Name: Jacob's Ladder, Hokkaido Jacob's Ladder
• Height: 50–60 cm (20–24 in)
• Spread: 30–45 cm (12–18 in)
• Flowers: Violet-purple stars with cream anthers, in small clusters on dark stems
• Bloom Time: Early summer (June to July)
• Foliage: Fern-like, emerging deep purple-black and turning green through summer
• Features: Dark spring foliage, good for cutting

Where to Plant: Use it in the middle of a part-shade border, along a woodland edge or in a container where the spring foliage gets noticed. The leaf colour is best with some sun, and the dark leaves are a gift wherever you want contrast.

Companion Plants: Give 'Purple Rain' a moist bed in sun or part shade with white bergenia, colourful heuchera and pink burnet. Bergenia 'Bressingham White' opens white flowers at 30 to 35 cm in April and May. Heuchera FYRE WING™ 'Spinel' adds colourful foliage at 18 cm. Sanguisorba obtusa brings fluffy pink bottlebrushes at 100 to 150 cm from June to August. Miscanthus × giganteus makes a towering green screen at the back, 250 to 350 cm tall.

Plant Care: Plant in moist, well-drained, average to rich soil. Some morning sun brings out the darkest leaf colour, while afternoon shade helps it through hot spells. Work compost into heavy clay so the crown doesn't sit wet. Keep it watered in dry weather. Remove spent flower stems to tidy the plant and encourage a few more blooms. This also limits self-seeding, and any seedlings that pop up may not have the dark leaves, so pull the green ones. Cut back in late fall or early spring, and divide in spring or early fall.

History: This Jacob's ladder comes from the moist open woods and mountain roadsides of Hokkaido in northern Japan, and its name yezoense refers to Ezo, the old name for the island. The German seed house Jelitto introduced the Purple Rain strain in 2006.

Final Thoughts: Give it some sun for the darkest spring leaves. Deer stay away, bees and butterflies don't. GRAB AN UMBRELLA AND PLANT IT.