Growing Guide
 
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Jacob�s Rod

Herbaceous Perennial Flower

Also known as King�s Spear, Yellow Asphodel, Jacob�s Rod Lily
Asphodeline lutea
Liliaceae Family
Synonym: Asphodelus luteus

Erect spires of starry yellow blooms up to 5 feet tall make this plant striking. Only hardy to Zone 6, it needs well-drained soil and prefers full sun.

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Site Characteristics
Sunlight:
  • full sun
  • part shade
Prefers full sun.

Soil conditions:

  • requires well-drained soil

Hardiness zones:

  • 6 to 8
Plant Traits

Lifecycle: perennial

Only hardy to Zone 6.

Ease-of-care: easy

Will require extra protection to overwinter where marginally hardy.

Height: 3 to 5 feet

Spread: 1 to 1.5 feet

Bloom time:

  • late spring
  • early summer

Flower color: yellow

Foliage color:

  • gray-green
  • blue-green

Straplike leaves are blue- to gray-green.

Foliage texture: medium

Shape:

  • cushion, mound or clump
  • grass-like

Shape in flower: flower stalks with upright spikes

Flowers borne along tall, erect stems.

Special Considerations
Special characteristics:
  • non-aggressive
  • non-invasive
  • not native to North America - Native to the Mediterranean
Special uses:
  • cut flowers
  • edible landscaping - The ancient Greeks commonly ate the boiled and mashed nutty tasting roots of this plant.
Growing Information
How to plant:

Propagate by seed, division or separation - Sow seeds in containers in cold frame in spring.

Divide in the fall. Make sure each division has 2 or 3 growing points.

Maintenance and care:
Mulch in fall to provide winter protection where marginally hardy.

More growing information: How to Grow Perennials

Varieties
�Flore Pleno� has double yellow flowers.