Obedient Plant

What it is. Obedient plant is a perennial in the mint family, grown for its spikes of tubular flowers. The flowers are usually purple to pink, though some are white; another page describes them as pale-purple to pink, with white also listed. The plant has upright, square stems and toothed, lance-shaped leaves that grow opposite each other. The common name comes from the way the flowers stay in position when moved around on their stalks.

Starting new plants. The pages here don’t give seed-sowing dates, sowing depth, or germination times. They list propagation by division, so the pages describe starting new plants from divided clumps rather than from seed.

Site and soil. Plant it in moist, well-drained, moderately fertile soil in full sun or partial shade. Another page describes the ideal soil as humus-rich and well-drained.

Climate. The listed hardiness zones are 3 to 9. The pages don’t give spacing between plants.

Staking. Taller plants may need to be staked.

Spreading. It can spread aggressively by runners and rhizomes, especially in moist sites. The roots are easy to pull out, which makes it easier to control. A shorter cultivar, ‘Miss Manners’, is described as not spreading as widely.

The page for the ‘Miss Manners’ cultivar lists susceptibility to black spot, a fungal disease. The other pages don’t mention pests or diseases.

Bloom time. Flowers appear from midsummer to early autumn. Another page gives August to October, and a third lists summer and fall.

Cut flowers. The flowers are good for cutting.