The Purple Perennial Wallflower That'll Bring Hummingbirds & Butterflies To Your Yard

The ideal home garden is both beautiful and biodiverse. A thriving ecosystem of flora and fauna can work together to create a harmonious oasis in the comfort of your backyard. Perennial wallflowers (Erysimum linifolium) like the cultivar 'Bowles's Mauve,' boast vibrant purple blooms and will entice friendly pollinators like hummingbirds and butterflies to pay your garden a visit year after year.

Nectar and pollen from 'Bowles's Mauve' stunning purple flowers are known to attract local pollinators like butterflies, bees, and ladybirds, which can be beneficial to your backyard ecosystem. The wallflower's striking petals are the perfect size and shape for these pollinators. Pollinators play an important role in keeping your garden biodiverse and protecting your plants from unwanted visitors and pests. Encouraging their presence in your home garden creates a positive environmental impact that extends beyond your backyard.  

If you're looking to start a pollinator garden, adding 'Bowles's Mauve' to your yard is a great place to begin. Luckily, 'Bowles's Mauve' is easy to care for, even if you don't have a green thumb. This low-maintenance wallflower tolerates infrequent watering and almost any type of soil. Here is how to grow and care for your 'Bowles's Mauve' so your plant grows to be happy and healthy. 

'Bowles's Mauve' is a flowering, evergreen shrub that is as durable as it is beautiful. The cheery, purple wallflower is drought-tolerant and will continue to bloom consistently as the seasons change. Some plants will blossom in the spring and continue to flower all the way into milder winter months. The variety is also known to deter wild deer and rabbits looking to feed on neighboring, cherished plants.

The unfussy plant will thrive in adequately drained soil and full to partial sunlight. 'Bowles's Mauve' can grow in partial shade, but the reduced amount of sunlight will yield fewer blooms. 'Bowles's Mauve' can be planted directly into your garden bed, but does particularly well when planted in a container garden with lots of drainage as a "filler" plant. USDA zones 6 to 10 offer suitable growing conditions for 'Bowles's Mauve' plants.

'Bowles's Mauve' can be successfully planted and established during the spring or fall. These wallflowers don't typically require any additional fertilizing to flourish, but you can work organic compost into your soil a week prior to planting for a nutrient boost. These fast growers can get leggy, though, so frequent pruning will keep them from overpowering your garden and encourage additional flowers to bloom. If you're looking for a low-maintenance wallflower that will bloom season after season, and attract hummingbirds and pollinators to your yard, 'Bowles's Mauve' could be the perfect fit.