Creeping Phlox – Phlox subulata

April 24, 2009
Larry Hurley
Perennial Plants
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Creeping Phlox, Phlox subulata, is one of our most popular species of perennials. It’s a Behnke Baysafe Native Plant, native to sandy and rocky areas of Maryland.

Growing low to the ground, it’s a nice ground cover for small-scale situations in sunny, well-drained locations. It’s particularly effective when it can drape over the edge of stone walls or the sides of raised beds.

The foliage can be lightly sheared after blooming to keep it neat. The cultivars ‘Emerald Cushion Blue’ and ‘Emerald Cushion Pink’ have the best foliage when the plants are out of bloom.

Creeping phlox is in bloom now (late April) in the landscape and in our pots, in many colors, including blue, white, pink, red, and a bicolor white/pink.

Larry Hurley

Larry Hurley worked at Behnke Nurseries from 1984 until the business was composted in 2019, primarily with the perennial department in growing, buying and sales.

Before landing at Behnke’s, he worked as a technician in a tissue culture lab, a houseplant “expert” at a florist shop, and inventory controller at a wholesale nursery in Dallas. With this and that, ten years passed.

When his wife Carolyn accepted a position at Georgetown University, Larry was hired at Behnke’s for the perennial growing department and garden center at Behnke’s Largo location.

In 2021, Larry and Carolyn moved back to Wisconsin to be closer to family and further from traffic. After 37 years in a shaded yard in Maryland, he is happy to have a sunny lot where he can grow all sorts of new perennials, if only he can keep the rabbits at bay. He also enjoys cooking, traveling, and the snowblower.