One of the bluestars with the richest displays, Amsonia illustris forms 2'-3' tall, vase-shaped clumps, with glossy, willow-like leaves. The star-shaped, sky blue flowers pop in early spring—similar to its sibling, Amsonia tabernaemontana , but in smaller clusters with pendant seedpods. Native to Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Texas, Ozark bluester is at home in a range of soils, and trouble free. In the fall, the willowy leaves turn golden yellow and provide a showy, whispy display in the garden. A wonderful addition to borders, meadows, and pollinator gardens.
A two season beauty, Amsonia illustris is well placed in massed plantings, both for the showy early season blue flowers and later for the lovely fine foliage, which turns brilliant yellow in the fall. Tolerant of a range of soils, other than wet conditions, it thrives in sunnier spots, but will tolerate shadier settings. Plants may need staking, especially if grown in shadier conditions. Cutting back by one-third after flowering will reduce height and limit flopping. Ozark bluestar does not spread, so it also make a well-behaved addition to a border. Division once established is best done in the early spring.
Space plants 1'-3' on center.
Ozark bluestar's habit is as wide as it is tall (2'-3'). If massing, it does well planted closer together (1'-2' on center), so that the fall foliage can shine as a wave of gold. If planted as a specimen, leave room for it to reach a spread of 2'-3' so it doesn't crowd its buddies in the garden.
For early season interest, combine with Aquilegia canadensis (American columbine). Although it prefers more shade during the summer, the bluestars' foliage will provide it. Another early season option is Anemone virginiana (tall thimbleweed). To contrast with the golden, fall foliage, combine with an aster such as Symphyotrichum laeve (smooth blue aster), or Symphyotrichum oolentangiense (skyeblue aster). For a more compact option, try the cultivar Symphyotrichum oblongifolium 'Raydon's Favorite' ('Raydon's Favorite' aromatic aster).
This is one of my favorite perennials. Ozark bluestar is a delicate looking, but it's a tough prairie plant.
Amsonia derives from, hang on, I have to Google this...okay, I'm back. The genus name is attributed to Dr. John Amson, a physician and botanist, who treated George Washington. The botanist John Clayton named the genus after him. The specific epithet, illustris is Latin for "bright, distinguished, famous." Not sure if that's for the good doctor or the wonderful plant.
BUY MORE, SAVE MORE
Recorded County Distribution: USDA data.
AR, KS, MO, OK, TX |
MAP OF WETLAND DELINEATION REGIONS
Code |
Status |
Designation |
Comment |
OBL |
Obligate Wetland |
Hydrophyte |
Almost always occur in wetlands |
FACW |
Facultative Wetland |
Hydrophyte |
Usually occur in wetlands, but may occur in non-wetlands |
FAC |
Facultative |
Hydrophyte |
Occur in wetlands and non-wetlands |
FACU |
Facultative Upland |
Nonhydrophyte |
Usually occur in non-wetlands, but may occur in wetlands |
UPL |
Obligate Upland |
Nonhydrophyte |
Almost never occur in wetlands |
Kingdom | Plantae | Plants |
Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants |
Superdivision | Spermatophyta | Seed plants |
Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants |
Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons |
Subclass | Asteridae | |
Order | Gentianales | |
Family | Apocynaceae | Dogbane family |
Genus | Amsonia | bluestar |
Species | Amsonia illustris | Ozark bluestar |
shining bluestar, showy blue-star, Missouri blue star, swamp bluestar
Sizes info
Shipping is free on all plants orders!
Your plants will ship using each grower’s preferred method: FedEx Ground, UPS Ground, or Spee-Dee Ground (in select midwestern states). Our growers ship orders Monday through Wednesday. The farther your plants need to travel, the earlier in the week they will ship. The goal is to have all plants delivered by the end of the week.
Shipping plugs:
Plugs are shipped in full flats, sometimes also referred to as trays. Multiple flats can be shipped in a single box. The flats are wrapped in netting or craft paper to secure the plants, and spacers are used between flats to keep the plants from being crushed.
When you unpack your plugs, the plants will have been somewhat flattened by the netting or craft paper. They will straighten out within a couple of days. You may also gently “fluff” them a bit to speed up the process. In some cases, your plants might have been cut back before packing, if the grower deemed them to have become too tall for safe packaging. Don’t worry, though, these guys know what they’re doing and would not compromise the health of the plants. They’ll fill back in in no time.
After receiving your plants’ journey in a dark box, it will be important to acclimate them to sunlight again. Over a couple of days, you should gradually move them into their preferred light exposure, and water them as per their requirement.
Although we always recommend putting your plants in the ground as soon as possible, they can stay healthy in the flats for a considerable amount of time. The key is to respect their growing requirements: if the species requires full sun, do not store them in the shade. If it is best adapted to dry soil, do not over-water.
Planting plugs:
We consider plugs ready to ship when the plants’ roots have filled the entire liner cell and the plants can easily be pulled out. In some cases you will have to go about it gently, wiggling the plant by the crown, and possibly squeezing the bottom of the liner to compress the growing medium and release the roots. Other times, the plants will appear to be root bound. They are not in the traditional sense. The plants are healthy but they have used up all the growing medium available to them. Plugs are at an aggressive stage of growth. As soon as planted the roots will immediately expand into your native soil. They establish faster than plants in larger containers, because they don’t have the luxury of a lot of growing media that can inhibit the roots from venturing outside of their comfort zone.
We are not going to address area preparation because the process can be complex and is always site-specific. However, as a rule, we recommend disturbing the soil as little as possible, and we do not recommend amending the soil. If you chose the right plant for the right conditions they will thrive. Any disturbance and amendments will only encourage weeds to emerge that never had a chance to do so before.
Installing plugs cannot be easier: dig a hole large enough for the roots to fit snugly inside, then water them in to eliminate air gaps. We recommend using a soil knife, sometimes referred to as hori hori, or a drill-adapted auger if it’s a large installation. If you use an auger, you will need a powerful drill. Depending on the size of the project and the type of soil, the process can be beyond what an average drill will bear. Mulching is recommended after installation to help keep weeds down while the plants establish. Be sure to keep it away from the crown of the plants. For large projects, you may want to mulch the area before planting, rather than tiptoeing through it after the fact. As a side note: if you are installing plugs in the fall, you might want to plant them so that the crown is about ¾” lower than the surrounding soil. The winter’s freeze/thaw cycles can push plugs out if the roots did not have enough time to establish and anchor them in.