Polemonium reptans Touch of Class

Polemonium reptans Touch of Class, also known as Creeping Jacob's Ladder, is a small perennial plant with a low-growing habit. Its foliage is remarkable, soft green-grey, finely marginated with white, and it regenerates throughout the entire growing season. In late spring, it produces loose clusters of small pink buds that open into mauve corollas. This plant is ideal for bordering a path in a woodland edge, a rock garden, a shady bed, in non-burning sun or partial shade.

The creeping Polemonium 'Touch of Class' belongs to the Polemoniaceae family. It is a cultivar derived from Polemonium reptans, native to the eastern United States, from Minnesota to New Hampshire, Georgia, Mississippi, and west of the Appalachians, where it is commonly found in rich and moist undergrowth, often along riverbanks. 'Touch of Class' is a recent American hybrid, more vigorous than Polemonium 'Stairway to Heaven', its parent. This perennial forms a prostrate clump about 40cm (16in) in all directions. Completely dormant in winter, the plant rapidly grows in spring and early summer, until flowering. Its deciduous foliage consists of finely divided pinnate leaves, flexible, resembling fern leaves, with 7 to 9 ovate and pointed leaflets, almost glabrous. They are distinguished by their soft green-grey colour, with each leaflet finely marginated with white. They continuously renew from spring to summer, before disappearing in winter. From May to July, erect flowering stems emerge from the foliage, bearing pink buds that open into small mauve tubular flowers with a white throat, slightly fragrant. This nectar-rich flowering is highly visited by bees and butterflies.

Plant it in a mixed border or as a border plant in combination with anemones, pasque flowers, or at the base of shrub or old roses. This variety prefers partially shaded exposures. To brighten up a woodland or shaded garden, this selection has no rival. Combine it with corydalis, bleeding hearts, Geranium nodosum, and epimediums. It is a good plant for decorating the edges of water features.

In the past, the dried roots of Polemonium reptans were used in herbal medicine. They were harvested in autumn and dried for later use.