Potentilla
Potentilla fruticosa
Also called cinquefoil
Potentilla blooms from June through September.
Mature size, hardiness zones, sun and the trait tags were checked against named botanical sources for this plant. The bloom months and water need on this page were not.
Growing Potentilla
Plant it in full sun. It prefers low water. It is hardy in USDA zones 2–7. Expect it to reach about 3 ft tall and 3.3 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 3 years.
When to plant Potentilla
Plant Potentilla in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. For the middle of its hardy zones 2 to 7 range, spring means April to June and fall means August or September. Once settled, it blooms from June to September.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar: for the middle of its range, start with zone 5 in April.
Comes in 10 varieties across 5 colors
Same plant, same care - pick the color you are growing.
Good to know about Potentilla
Curated from university extensions, botanic gardens and other primary sources, with the source named on every note.
Worth knowing
One of the most cold-hardy landscape shrubs: reliably hardy to USDA zone 2, thriving where little else does, in subarctic northern Canada and high alpine elevations. per NC State and USDA
How drought-tolerant is it?
Garden sources call it drought-tolerant once established, but in the wild it grows in fens and wet ground. Water it through its first season, then let it be. per NC State and USDA
Hates heat and humidity
It dislikes warm nights and does poorly in zone 7 and warmer, especially the humid Southeast. A cool-summer plant: treat hot regions as marginal. per NC State
Strongly deer-resistant
Deer browse it only lightly and prefer other forage; mature leaves are coarse and astringent. A good pick where deer pressure runs high. per NC State
Long-season pollinator plant
Its long summer-to-fall bloom feeds butterflies, bumblebees, and specialist mining bees. A genuine insectary plant, not just an ornamental. per NC State
Blooms on new wood
It flowers on the current season's growth, so prune in late winter or early spring before buds break. Every few years, cut a scraggly plant back hard. per Iowa State
What pairs well with Potentilla
Good companions share its growing conditions and add something it lacks: an earlier or later bloom, a lower carpet in front, or structure through winter.
Rock Cress
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Creeping Phlox
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both are strong pollinator plants, and they feed in different months; lower at 6 in, for the front of the border.
Sea Thrift
Shares full sun and low water; opens in mid spring and overlaps into this one's season; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter; both offer pollinator forage.
Flowering Crabapple
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both are strong pollinator plants, and they feed in different months; stands well above at 20 ft, a canopy to plant beneath.
Maiden Grass
Shares full sun and low water; overlaps, then carries the display into mid fall; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds; taller at 5.9 ft, for the layer behind it.
Lilac
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; taller at 9.8 ft, for the layer behind it.
Viburnum
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; taller at 6.6 ft, for the layer behind it.
Crocus
Shares full sun and low water; blooms in late winter, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; lower at 4 in, for the front of the border.
Featured in these guides
Explore similar plants
You might also like
Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.