Polemonium reptans

Polemonium reptans is a herbaceous perennial plant that is native to eastern regions of North America. Common names for this plant include Creeping Jacob's Ladder, Spreading Jacob's Ladder, Abscess Root, Blue Bells, and Stairway to Heaven among others. Polemonium reptans grows 50 centimetres (20 in) tall, with pinnate leaves of up to 20 centimetres (8 in) long consisting of 5 to 13 leaflets. The leaves and flower stems form from a vertical crown which has many fibrous roots. Its flowers are produced in panicles upon fragile stems from mid to late spring. These blooms are 1.3 cm (?0.5 in) long, and have five light blue-violet petals which are fused at the base, enclosed by a tubular calyx with five pointed lobes. The stigma extends beyond the anthers of each flower, which makes self pollination difficult, so insects have to cross-pollinate to enable these plants to produce seeds. Polemonium reptans is typically found in rich, moist woods, often along stream banks. Its range extends from Minnesota to New Hampshire in the northern United States, and from Georgia to Mississippi in the south. It is most prolific west of the Appalachian Mountains.

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  Partial shade

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  Occasional watering

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  Frost Hardy: 23F (-5°C)

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  Moist and rich