Ruellia
Ruellia spp.
Special Features
Offers tubular flowers, often in shades of blue or purple. A versatile plant for borders or naturalized areas, attracting butterflies and hummingbirds.
Plant Specifications
Our team will help you integrate this plant into your landscape design
Growing Ruellia on Martha's Vineyard
Ruellia humilis, the wild petunia, is an adaptable native perennial that handles Martha's Vineyard's hot, dry summer stretches with notable ease, making it a strong candidate for sunny, sandy borders in Edgartown and Oak Bluffs. Its lavender-purple flowers bloom freely through the summer heat and continue well into fall, providing color during the season when many other perennials begin to fade. The plant tolerates poor, well-drained soils and establishes readily in the island's characteristic sandy substrate without requiring significant soil amendment.
Deer resistance is solid, an important practical advantage on island properties near woodland edges. Maintenance is minimal, a spring cutback and periodic deadheading are generally sufficient to keep it tidy through the growing season.
