Phlox - Alpine forms

Dwarf mountain phlox follow on from Aubretia in the garden. Their carpets of fine-cut leaves, studded with jewel-like flowers, in many shades of pink, blue and white. Flourishing in full sun and a well-drained soil. All are evergreen, but for colder areas forms of Phlox douglasii with fare better than Phlox subulata.

The dwarf Phlox species generally have a short petal-tube, and so can be visited by a range of pollinators from bees to flies; the creeping, evergreen growth helps conserve water in a scree garden, and provide shelter and refuge for invertebrates, including beneficial predators such as ground-beetles.