California Gardens - The Year Round Gardening Site

Penstemon cobaea * Showy Beardtongue, Prarie Beardtongue, Foxglove Penstemon

Penstemon cobaea is a great addition to the perennial border. I love the architecture of the stamens inside the throat of the fower in Penstemons. The white flowered Penstemon cobaea has just a hint of purple at the base of the flower and in the anthers. Penstemon cobaea blooms in the spring and early summer. Penstemon cobaea prefers light shade and a bit of water when planted near the coast, more shade if planted inland. The dark green leaves are all at the base of the plant. The flower stalks come up to about 18 inches. This plant is very similar to the Penstemon digitalis cultivar 'Huskers Red' except that the latter has red leaves. Penstemon cobaea is a potential larval food source for the Common Buckeye Butterfly and could be a nice addition to your butterfly garden.

Penstemon cobaea

White flowers with purple markings - Penstemon cobaea - Prarie Beardtongue, Foxglove Penstemon.

Other Penstemons featured on this site:
Keckiella antirrhinoides * Yellow Bush Penstemon
Keckiella breviflora * Yawning Penstemon
Keckiella cordifolia * Heartleaf Penstemon
Keckiella ternata * Blue Stemmed Penstemon
Penstemon Apple Blossom
Penstemon Burgundy Brew
Penstemon centranthifoliius
Penstemon eatonii
Penstemon Evelyn
Penstemon Firebird
Penstemon grinnellii
Penstemon heterophyllus
Penstemon Hidcote Pink
Penstemon Holly's White
Penstemon Husker Red
Penstemon Margarita BOP
Penstemon Midnight
Penstemon palmeri
Penstemon parryi
Penstemon Raven
Penstemon Red Rocks
Penstemon spectabilis
Penstemon triflorus

The closely related Keckiella cordifolia is appropriate for this list as well