S & J Nursery’s Guide to Growing
Pentas Old Fashion Heirloom
/ Egyptian Star Flower
in the St. Augustine / Jacksonville Florida area Landscape
( Pentas Lanceolata)
Pentas Old Fashion Heirloom Origins:
Native to tropical regions of Africa. Pentas lanceolata is a Florida Friendly landscape plant that provides loads of nectar for your butterflies and pollinators. It is by far one of my all time favorite garden plants and I think no garden should be without a few, especially these older heirloom selections, they get big so give them a sot at the back of the border where you wont mind them being so tall. I have had the red ones get 6 ft tall in an afternoon shade spot in my home garden. Although they are pretty drought tolerant and seem at home in Florida’s sandy soil gardens their happy place is 3-4 ft tall in moist but well drained soil in full sun or part shade. I have done detailed pages for each of the colors available for the heirloom Pentas and linked them below!
Old Fashion Heirloom Pentas Ruby Glow / Ruby Red
Pentas Old Fashion Heirloom ‘Jessica’
Pentas Old Fashion Heirloom ‘Starburst’
Love the Idea of Pentas in your home garden but want something shorter, maybe knee high?
Try the Butterfly Series Pentas
or try ‘Orchid Illusion’ Pentas
Want something shorter than that? Maybe shin high? ok but keep in mind these may be more like annuals in the landscape, in all that dwarf breeding they lost a bit of hardiness, but they still come back on warmer winter years and are still a great plant!
Try the Grafitti Series Pentas
or how about just boot high and not quite the range of colors that the Graffiti series boasts but my favorite for containers…
try the BeeBright Series Pentas