Mel's Blue Stokes' Aster

Mel's Blue carries four-inch violet-blue flowers with white centers on stems stiff enough to hold them upright, which is what separates this from the older Stokes' asters. Stokesia laevis Mel's Blue grows 12 to 15 inches tall and wide in full sun, hardy from Zone 5 through Zone 8. The flowers are large and fringed, closer to a cornflower than a daisy, and they bloom in midsummer. Deadheading extends the run, and they cut well. The foliage is strap-shaped and evergreen through winter in the milder part of the range, forming a low rosette that stays tidy after bloom. Stokes' aster is a southeastern native, and heat tolerance is what it brings, so it keeps flowering through humid summers. Well-drained soil matters more than anything else, since winter wet is the usual cause of failure. Deer leave it alone.