Astilbe Flower
The Astilbe Flower - A Great Choice For Most Gardens
The Astilbe flower is one of the nicer plants to have in the yard or garden. While not difficult to grow, the Astilbe is rather demanding in one respect, the soil it is growing in must be kept moist. Over watering is seldom a problem here, as it is with some plants. That doesn't mean that the plant should sit in water, but the roots should be constantly kept moist.
Shade And Moisture Are Key - The Astilbe is a shade loving plant, ideal in situations calling for moist soil. It will grow fine in full sun, but you'll have to keep it watered regularly. The Astilbe flower is hardy in USDA Zones 4 through 8. There are several varieties, and depending on the variety, the plant may grow anywhere from a foot to 4 feet in height. Once established, the plant will slowly spread, and may have to be dug up and divided every few years.
The foliage is fern-like and often is used in dried flower arrangements. The Astilbe flower itself is feathery in appearance and the plumes also make nice dried flowers. The Astilbe blooms once during the season, each plant sending up several stalks topped of by the feathery plumes. Dead heading the plumes may be desirable for the sake of appearance, but will not result in a second bloom. Some prefer to leave the spent flowers on the plant, and the foliage as well, for winter landscape interest. If this is done, the dead foliage should be cut back to the ground at the beginning of the next growing season.
Numerous Varieties Are Available - Give the Astilbe flower sufficient water and fertile soil and it will reward you by being essentially trouble free. There are few insects or diseases that give the Astilbe much of a problem. A nice mid-to late summer blooming variety is Astilbe arendsii ‘Bridal Veil’, having as the name implies, lovely pure white plumes. A very colorful variety, and an earlier bloomer is Astilbe arendsii ‘Fanal’ which offers blood red flowers and bronze foliage. Other colors, like pinks and purples, burgundies, and maroons, are also readily available.
While the Astilbe can be grown from seed, and often is, it is more typically grown from plant divisions, or purchased as potted plants and then transplanted into the garden. Planting a bed of Astilbe flowers can be enjoyable if you like working with rich, loamy, loose soil, which the Astilbe loves. It will grow in a clay soil, but often not as well. A hard, easily dried-out soil is not a good choice for this plant.
Watch The Wind - From personal experience, the results in a bed of Astilbe plans can be quite variable if one part of the bed gets significantly different amounts of shade than another part, or if one part of a planting is in a more windy location than another. Wind is in itself not an enemy of the Astilbe, in fact plants in bloom are extremely attractive as the plumes dance in the wind. A warm wind though has a tendency to dry things out, especially soil, and it's best to locate plants where this does not pose a problem. Moving plants from one location to another is often the only solution in such a case, but fortunately these plants can be moved any time during the growing season if is done with care.
If you live in an area where there is little shade and constant drying winds, the Astilbe may not be the plant for you. All is not lost however, as the Astilbe can flourish in a pot or container in a protected location. It is a plant well worth trying to grow.