Digging deeperPlant Library

Forget-Me-Not flowers

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Forget-Me-Not in bloom

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Ornamental Features

Forget-Me-Not features delicate cymes of sky blue flowers at the ends of the stems from mid spring to early summer, which emerge from distinctive yellow flower buds. Its narrow leaves remain green in color throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Forget-Me-Not is an herbaceous biennial with a mounded form. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Self-Seeding

Forget-Me-Not is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Shade
• Mass Planting
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Naturalizing And Woodland Gardens

Planting & Growing

Forget-Me-Not will grow to be about 12 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 12 inches. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 10 inches apart. It grows at a fast rate, and tends to be biennial, meaning that it puts on vegetative growth the first year, flowers the second, and then dies. However, this species tends to self-seed and will thereby endure for years in the garden if allowed. As this plant tends to go dormant in summer, it is best interplanted with late-season bloomers to hide the dying foliage.

This plant does best in partial shade to shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is native to parts of North America.