Gaura

Gaura: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Loose, airy perennial 60–120 cm tall and 60–90 cm wide, with long, arching flower stems from a leaf rosette.

Leaves

Narrow and lance-shaped, 3–9 cm long, green, sometimes with reddish spots; often tinged red in autumn.

Flowers

Flowers of 2–3 cm with four upward-facing petals and long, protruding stamens, in loose spikes, from June to October.

Colour

White ageing to pink, from pink buds; there are also pink and red-leaved varieties.

Roots

A long, fleshy taproot: it does not move well.

Flowering: June–October · Sowing: February–March · Plants: April–June · Pruning: April and July

Why grow it?

• Flowers for months, from June into October, without a break.
• Brings movement and lightness to the border: the flower stems sway in the slightest breeze.
• Bees and butterflies visit the flowers all summer.
• Drought-tolerant thanks to its deep taproot: ideal for a gravel garden or a sunny, dry border.
• Looks lovely in a large pot on a sunny patio.

Gaura: where does it grow best?

• Full sun; in shade it flowers less and flops.
• Poor, free-draining sandy or light loamy soil, acid to chalky.
• Dry: wet soil in winter is the main reason it disappears.
• On heavy clay, only on a mound with plenty of gravel or in a raised bed.
• Allow 50–60 cm between plants; it looks best in a group of three.

Light

Sun

Soil type

Sand or loam

Acidity

Not fussy

Moisture

Dry

Size

0.9 m tall, 0.6 m wide

Hardiness

Hardy (to -15 °C)

Goes well with

• Fountain grass: Feathery plumes that, like gaura, move with the wind.
• Tall verbena: Purple flowers on tall, sparse stems, just as airy and loved by butterflies.
• Catmint: A low blue foreground in the same dry soil.
• Purple coneflower: Sturdy pink flowers as a resting point among the airy stems.

Gaura: when and how to plant it?

Plant in April–June.

1. Plant in April–June, once the soil has warmed: it then has a whole summer to root before its first winter.
2. Dig a hole slightly wider than the root ball and, in heavier soil, mix in plenty of coarse sand or gravel.
3. Set the plant at the same depth as in the pot and firm the soil.
4. Space plants 50–60 cm apart.
5. Water when planting and in dry spells for the first few weeks.
6. Don’t use compost as a mulch against the base; gravel is better.

Care

Water

Only in dry spells during the first season. After that its taproot sees it through.

Feeding

Not needed. Fertiliser makes the stems soft and the plant less hardy.

Deadheading

Not needed: the spikes keep flowering at the tip. Cut back floppy stems by a third in July.

Support

Usually not needed on poor soil. On richer soil, sturdy neighbours help.

In a pot

A deep pot with a drainage hole and compost mixed with gravel; water regularly in summer.

Tip: Plant it in a group of three in poor, gritty soil and leave the old stems all winter: it survives wet winters far better that way than if you cut it back in autumn.

Gaura: when to prune it?

Pruning months: April and July.

When: In April, when the new leaves appear at the base. Optionally a light trim in July.

How:

• Leave the old stems standing all winter: they protect the crown from frost and wet.
• In April, cut them back to just above the new leaves at the base.
• If the plant falls open or flops in July, cut the stems back by a third: it flowers again a few weeks later.

Caution: Don’t cut back in autumn: the crown is left open and wet, and it survives winter less well.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed

Indoors in February–March at 18–20 °C. Prick out seedlings into small pots and plant out after mid-May; they often flower in their first year.

Basal cuttings

In April–May, take cuttings of young shoots from the base and root them in sandy cutting compost.

Self-sown seedlings

It sometimes self-seeds. Keep a few seedlings to replace old plants; move them while young.

Gaura: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −15 °C: protect young plants.

• Hardy to about −15 °C, but only in dry soil: wet winters are more dangerous than frost.
• Leave the old stems until April; they protect the crown.
• It often lives only 3–5 years, so keep a few seedlings or cuttings in reserve.
• In a pot: stand it against a wall, out of the rain, and wrap the pot in hard frost.

Diseases and pests

• Gone after winter: Usually due to wet soil. Replant in a drier spot, in gravel or on a mound, and don’t cut back until April.
• Floppy and soft: Soil too rich, fertiliser or too little sun. Don’t feed and cut back by a third in July.
• Few flowers: Too much shade or fertiliser. Move young plants into full sun.
• Aphids: On the tips of young stems. Natural predators usually deal with them; otherwise hose them off.

Through the year

• February: Sow indoors at 18–20 °C.
• March: Sow indoors. Prick out seedlings.
• April: Cut old stems back to just above the new leaves. Plant.
• May: Plant. Take basal cuttings. Plant out seedlings after mid-May.
• June: Flowering begins. Plant until the end of June.
• July: Cut back floppy stems by a third.
• August: Full flower, with bees and butterflies.
• September: In flower. Leaves begin to turn red.
• October: Last flowers. Leave the old stems.
• November: Leave stems until April. Gravel around the base, no compost.

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Butterflies

Nectar for butterflies.

Did you know?

• Following a DNA-based reclassification it now belongs to the same genus as the evening primrose; the old name Gaura remains popular in the trade.
• The species name honours Ferdinand Lindheimer, a German-born botanist who collected plants in Texas in the 19th century.
• Each flower is short-lived, but the spikes keep producing new buds at the tip for months.