Brunnera 'Alexander's Great'
Brunnera macrophylla 'Alexander's Great' · Boraginaceae
A giant brunnera, twice the size of 'Jack Frost', with silver leaves veined in green that reach the size of a dinner plate.
- Size
- 16 in tall, 2½ ft wide
- Zones
- 3 to 8
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Late April to late May
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around brunnera 'Alexander's Great'
The planner designed this bed around brunnera 'Alexander's Great' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why brunnera 'Alexander's Great' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Brunnera 'Alexander's Great' × 1, blue
- 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 8, tan
- 3 Creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple' × 7, purple
- 4 Turtlehead 'Hot Lips' × 5, pink
- 5 Log fern × 3, dark green leaves
- 6 White bleeding heart × 1, white
- 7 Hardy cyclamen × 7, pink
- 8 Grecian windflower × 12, blue
Why this plant
- The only bold leaves here. The rest are fine and medium. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
- The only airy sprays. The others are spires, dense clusters, bells and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- In the middle. At 16 in it is the step between creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple' (8 in) in front and log fern (3½ ft) behind: each is seen over the one before.
- One plant. Three or more is usual for a plant of this kind, and reads better.
- Bold leaf against fine. Moor grass 'Greenlee' is beside it: the strongest contrast of leaf there is.
Why now
- In flower for six weeks. From late April to late May.
- Part of the bed's peak. With creeping phlox 'Sherwood Purple', white bleeding heart and Grecian windflower in early May: 4 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 5 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The flowers stay on the cool side of the palette: blue, purple, pink, tan and white. Neither end outweighs the other: the visual weight is split 55 to 45, left to right.
The planner's own design check: 15 Excellent, 2 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where brunnera 'Alexander's Great' goes in a border
At 16 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is short (12 to 18 in).
Its job: drift. Planted in a small group of three or five, and repeated further along in the other number.
It has the presence of a hosta and is not eaten by slugs or deer. Use it where a bold, pale leaf is wanted in the middle of a shady bed.
- A bold silver leaf for shade
- A deer-resistant alternative to hosta
- Massing under trees
What to plant with brunnera 'Alexander's Great'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Japanese painted fern: its silver leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; fine leaves against its bold ones; happy in the same moist soil.
- Astilbe: takes over when it finishes, flowering from late June; fine leaves against its bold ones; happy in the same moist soil.
- Solomon's seal: in flower together for five weeks, from early May; medium leaves against its bold ones; tall enough (3 ft) to stand behind it.
Questions about brunnera 'Alexander's Great'
Does brunnera 'Alexander's Great' need sun or shade?
Brunnera 'Alexander's Great' grows in part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does brunnera 'Alexander's Great' grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 8. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does brunnera 'Alexander's Great' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late April to late May. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 3 | Early May to mid June |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Early May to early June |
| Zone 5 | Late April to late May |
| Zone 6 | Mid April to late May |
| Zone 7 | Mid April to mid May |
| Zone 8 | Early April to early May |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should brunnera 'Alexander's Great' be planted?
24 in (60 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 2½ ft (75 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 16 in (40 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many brunnera 'Alexander's Great' plants do I need?
At 24 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 3 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 6 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 10 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as a group of three or five, with a second group further along in the other number.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is brunnera 'Alexander's Great' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Is there a native plant like brunnera 'Alexander's Great'?
Brunnera 'Alexander's Great' comes from Turkey, North Caucasus, Transcaucus. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Creeping Jacob's ladder: the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 12 in narrower, fine leaves, not bold.
- Woodland phlox 'Blue Moon': the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 4 in shorter, 10 in narrower.
- Wild geranium 'Espresso': the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 8 in narrower, pink, not blue.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat brunnera 'Alexander's Great'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer and rabbits. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after brunnera 'Alexander's Great'?
Brunnera 'Alexander's Great' is over by late May. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Astilbe: from late June to mid July, 24 in tall (a recorded partner).
- Lady's mantle: from late May to early July, 18 in tall.
- Cranesbill 'Rozanne': from early June to early October, 18 in tall.
What does brunnera 'Alexander's Great' look like in winter?
Brunnera 'Alexander's Great' dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.
Is brunnera 'Alexander's Great' good for bees and butterflies?
Brunnera 'Alexander's Great' is visited by pollinators and bees.
More Brunnera
- Brunnera 'Looking Glass' Brunnera macrophylla 'Looking Glass'
- Siberian bugloss Brunnera macrophylla
- Siberian bugloss 'Jack Frost' Brunnera macrophylla 'Jack Frost'
In these guides
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Rabbit-resistant plants
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Plants for bees
- Plants with blue flowers
- Silver and grey-leaved plants
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 16 in (40 cm) tall, 2½ ft (75 cm) wide
- Plant
- 24 in (60 cm) apart
- Height class
- Short (12 to 18 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Late April to late May; airy sprays; blue
- Leaves
- Bold texture, herbaceous; silver, green
- Shape
- Mounding, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 8
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Boraginaceae
- Comes from
- Turkey, North Caucasus, Transcaucus
- Attracts
- Pollinators, bees
- Stands up to
- Deer, rabbits
Checked against NC State Extension and VASCAN (plants of Canada). Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.