The Lacy Phacelia is an elegant plant that blooms in the summer with lacy, light-purple flowers. It’s a high-nectar plant, so it attracts pollinators to the area. It grows to about 1 to 2 feet tall, and it can be planted in any zone from 1 through 10. It was originally a desert plant, native to the deserts in the Southwestern U.S., so it is very drought-friendly. It’s an easy plant to grow that requires little maintenance, and its spring/summer blooms last over a month.
Light and Temperature Requirements
As it is a desert plant, it needs full sunlight. Plant it in an area that gets as much sunlight as is possible on your property. It isn’t too picky about its temperature. It loves heat, but it will grow in cooler temperatures. If you’re germinating seeds, they need to be at least 40 to 68 degrees. The plants need a minimum of 55 to 60 degrees to be at their healthiest, though they can tolerate colder temperatures. A temperature of 18 degrees will kill the plant.
Watering
After planting the Lacy Phacelia, water it every three days for the first month. Be sure to give it a good soak so that the water gets down to the roots. And, don’t get the foliage wet if you can help it. It helps to lay a trickling garden hose nest to the plant. After that first month, you won’t have to water it anymore as long as you get regular rainfall. If there is a serious drought, water it again using the soil-soaking method. If you have this plant in a container, water it about once a week.
Soil and Fertilizing
The Lacy Phacelia isn’t picky about its soil It will grow just about anywhere and in any soil type, as long as it isn’t permanently wet as with wetlands or lakeside. They will grow in any dry soil, loamy soil, or sandy soil. The soil can be rich or poor, as long as it drains well and isn’t wet. If it is in poor soil and you want to fertilize it, adding a balanced, organic fertilizer to its soil before you plant it can help it stay healthier.
Deadheading and Pruning
Lacy Phacelia loves to spread, and if you don’t want it to, you will need to deadhead the flowers. Just pinch off any dead or wilting blooms before they can scatter seeds. Other than deadheading, it doesn’t need much maintenance, and there is no need to prune these plants.
Propagation
This plant drops a lot of seeds from its flowers, and it’s relatively easy to grow it from seed. You can gather the seeds and plant them or allow the new seedlings to grow alongside the established plant. Generally, the seeds need a period of dormancy, so if you are planting them, wait about two months before you do so. When planting the seeds, it can help germination to soak them overnight and then to scratch the seed coat to make it easier for the seedling to emerge. To plant them, loosely cover them with soil and tamp it down to keep the seeds touching the surrounding soil. If the weather is dry, water the seeds. If you get regular rainfall, just leave them to be soaked by the rain.
