Monument Plant (Frasera speciosa syn. Swertia radiata), packet of 30 seeds

Family: Gentian (Gentianaceae)

Hardy to Zone 3 to 8

(Elkweed, Deer’s Ears, Green Gentian)  Monocarpic perennial flowering in a showy column of waxy-white florets with violet spots (nectar guides) and 4 radiating stamina,  to a height of 7 feet.  Monumental indeed.  Native to sunny, grassy meadows and mountainsides of the western US and the Rocky Mountain states south into Mexico.  Plants make a powerful rosette that may persist for up to 80 years before flowering.  Once the plant flowers and goes to seed, it dies.  However, in habitat, when the plant falls over, it serves to nurture its seeds and seedlings underneath the decomposing stem and leaves, thereby assuring re-emergence of progeny.  The leaves of the rosette are smooth, pale green, often with purple stems.  This plant demonstrates mast flowering, where plants of different ages in a given mountain meadow may all flower synchronously due to auspicious combinations of environmental stimuli.  The fresh or dried leaves and root are used in traditional medicine in tea or tincture form (TWM): digestive bitter promoting gastric secretions, treats indigestion, poor food assimilation and constipation.  Plant prefers full sun and neutral to acidic soils, performing well in low-nutrient substrates, rock gardens and alpine gardens.  Water requirement medium.  The seeds may be fall-sown in outdoor shadehouse conditions or cold greenhouse for germination in the spring.  Alternatively, give 60 days moist refrigeration, then plant seeds in warm (54 to 68 degrees F) soil for germination.  Work seedlings up in pots until sufficiently sized to transplant to the landscape at a spacing of 2 to 3 feet apart.

30 seeds/pkt., Open Pollinated, Untreated, NO GMO’s