Hot Lips Turtlehead

This is an elegant native beauty with a funny name. Even if your visitors won't be able to keep a straight face after asking you about it, the Hot Lips Turtlehead (Chelone lyonii 'Hot Lips') is a really special wetland wildflower.

This flowering native springs to life with pink, puffy corollas that look ready to give you a smooch, flowering from the bottom of the spire up. Lasting from late summer through fall! These flowers are bell-shaped, with the lower petal that extends out with fine yellow hairs (imagine a pink turtle's head sticking out his yellow tongue). Being natives with a wide variability, the flowers can range in color from hot pink to periwinkle and lavender.

Pollinators won't care which color they are because bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds will happily stop by all growing season for the nectar! If you're looking for late-season blooms, it's happy to fulfill that request. Hardy throughout USDA planting zones 3 to 8, they grow well in a wide range of conditions, including wet soil which seems impossible to plant in.

Landscape Application:

The Hot Lips Turtlehead's pink flowers are gorgeous in relation to its deep green foliage. This plant's branches fill with forest-green lance-shaped leaves. These leaves first emerge a dark golden brown before unfurling to their verdant green. Use them as a great backdrop to other plants in your mixed perennial garden, cut flower gardens, or show them off in the cottage border.

Create groupings or specimen plantings with these unique plants and be sure to put a plaque with their name to catch everyone's eye! People aren't the only ones who admire this delightful plant. The pastel blooms cast a spell over bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds! With such fantastic color, you'll want to be sure you snap a few pictures when these pollinators visit.

This perennial would also be a great addition to your native plantings, wildflower gardens, and wetland prairie gardens, perfect for that damp shady area where other plants struggle to thrive. Because this plant also enjoys more shade and moisture, it does well in woodland gardens and along ponds. Try it in a Rain Garden to absorb rain runoff in a soggy spot in the yard!

• Soft Pink Flowers On Tall Flowering Stems
• Deep Green Foliage
• Tolerates Wet Soil & Shade
• Native Plant Attracts Butterflies, Hummingbirds & Other Pollinators
• Rain Gardens, Groupings, Native Wetland Plantings & Garden Borders

#ProPlantTips for Care:

Gardeners adore this plant's ability to thrive in less-than-perfect conditions. This fast-growing perennial does well in shade and partial shade. It even tolerates medium to high moisture soils of almost any type.

Trim the flowers once they get sparse and leggy to encourage a rebloom and prune back the entire plant in the autumn once the foliage is killed by frost and you notice any hint of powdery mildew or other foliar issues. You can also prune in the early spring before new growth emerges, but be sure to remove all old debris and add a layer of mulch around the base of the plant to boost organic matter.

• Full Sun in Cooler Zones, Part Shade Everywhere & Shade In Hot Climates
• Well-Drained Soil Of Any Kind
• Moderate to High Moisture
• Deadhead To Encourage Rebloom/Prune Fall/Spring
• Not A Favorite Of Deer

The Hot Lips Turtlehead is sure to bring a buzz to your backyard. Not just because bees adore it, but because it has such gorgeous pink blooms! Order this pretty perennial selection today at NatureHills.com!