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Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'

Ajuga reptans 'Burgundy Glow' · Lamiaceae Popular

Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' (Ajuga reptans 'Burgundy Glow') in flower
Photo: Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

A tricolour bugleweed: each leaf is splashed with cream, pink and green, and flushes burgundy in cold weather. Blue flower spikes in spring.

Size
6 in tall, 18 in wide
Zones
3 to 9
Light
Part sun to shade
Flowers
Early May to late May
Pets
No toxicity recorded
Job in a bed
Carpet

A bed built around bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'

The planner designed this bed around bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) cottage garden in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' stands where it does.

A 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) bed at eye level in mid May: Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow', Moor grass 'Greenlee', Turtlehead 'Hot Lips', Tall astilbe 'Superba', Dwarf English boxwood, Creeping Jacob's ladder, Glory-of-the-snow, Giant snowdrop.
A 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) cottage garden in zone 6, part shade, seen from the path in mid May.
4. Tall astilbe 'Superba'44. Tall astilbe 'Superba'44. Tall astilbe 'Superba'43. Turtlehead 'Hot Lips'33. Turtlehead 'Hot Lips'33. Turtlehead 'Hot Lips'35. Dwarf English boxwood51. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'12. Moor grass 'Greenlee'22. Moor grass 'Greenlee'22. Moor grass 'Greenlee'21. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'12. Moor grass 'Greenlee'26. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder66. Creeping Jacob's ladder61. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'11. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'18. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop8. Giant snowdrop7. Glory-of-the-snow7. Glory-of-the-snow7. Glory-of-the-snow
From above, to scale. Each circle is one plant, as wide as the room it needs.

The plants

  1. 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 4, tan
  2. 3 Turtlehead 'Hot Lips' × 3, pink
  3. 4 Tall astilbe 'Superba' × 3, purple
  4. 5 Dwarf English boxwood × 1, dark green leaves
  5. 6 Creeping Jacob's ladder × 12, blue
  6. 7 Glory-of-the-snow × 3, white
  7. 8 Giant snowdrop × 12, white

Why this plant

  • Nothing here is unique to it. Its leaf, flower shape and colour are all on the plan already. Its case rests on where it stands and when it performs.

Why here

  • On the front edge. At 6 in it frames the bed without hiding it, and it is in leaf all season. It finishes 52% of the edge.
  • 13 plants in 3 runs (5, 5 and 3). Runs of different lengths make the edge a frame, not a ruled line.

Why now

  • In flower for five weeks. From early May to late May.
  • Part of the bed's peak. With moor grass 'Greenlee' and creeping Jacob's ladder in mid May: 3 kinds at once. No week has more.

Planned as a cottage garden: 27 of the 36 plants (75%), bulbs aside, stand alone or in groups of no more than five, small enough for the kinds to mingle. Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' is the plant there is most of: 13 of the 51. A cool scheme: blue, pink, purple, tan and white.

The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 6 Good. 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 bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' goes in a border

At 6 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is ground-hugging (up to 6 in).

Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.

Variegated foliage reads as lighter than plain green, so it lifts a dark corner. Use one variegated plant per group of neighbours; two side by side look busy.

  • Bright groundcover for part shade
  • Edging a shady path
  • Containers

What to plant with bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'

Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:

  • Hosta: its green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; bold leaves against its medium ones; a low mound at the foot of its spires.
  • Japanese painted fern: its silver leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; tall enough (18 in) to stand behind it; happy in the same moist soil.
  • Lenten rose: in flower together for two weeks, from early May; bold leaves against its medium ones; a low mound at the foot of its spires.

Questions about bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'

Does bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' need sun or shade?

Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun), 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, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.

What zones does bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' grow in?

USDA zones 3 to 9. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).

Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.

When does bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' flower in my zone?

In zone 5 it flowers early May 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.

Roughly when bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' is in flower
Zone 3Mid May to mid June
Zone 4Early May to early June
Zone 5Early May to late May
Zone 6Late April to late May
Zone 7Mid April to mid May
Zone 8Mid April to early May
Zone 9Early 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 bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' be planted?

12 in (30 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 18 in (45 cm), so a group knits into one patch.

It grows 6 in (15 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.

How many bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' plants do I need?

At 12 in apart, set out in staggered rows:

  • 12 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
  • 11 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
  • 38 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own

In a mixed border, plant it as threes and fives, along the front and just behind it.

In the bed above, the planner used 13 in three groups.

Is bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' 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 bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'?

Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' comes from Europe, northern Africa, southwestern Asia. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:

  • Robin's plantain 'Lynnhaven Carpet': the same job in a bed, the same size and the same flowering time; lavender, not blue, wants average soil.
  • Green-and-gold: the same job in a bed, the same size and the same flowering time; yellow, not blue.
  • Creeping woodland phlox: the same job in a bed, the same size, the same flowering time and the same colour; wants average soil.

Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.

Do deer eat bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'?

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.

Will bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' spread?

It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Spreads by runners into a dense mat, though more slowly than plain bugleweed. Keep it out of lawns.

What flowers after bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow'?

Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' is over by late May. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:

What does bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' look like in winter?

Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' holds some of its leaves into winter, more in a mild year or a sheltered spot, and they look tired by March. Cut the old ones off as new growth starts.

Is bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' good for bees and butterflies?

Bugleweed 'Burgundy Glow' is visited by bees, moths, hummingbirds and songbirds.

More Ajuga

In these guides

Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9

In flower in: May

Every fact on record

Type
Perennial (groundcover)
Size
6 in (15 cm) tall, 18 in (45 cm) wide
Plant
12 in (30 cm) apart
Height class
Ground-hugging (up to 6 in)
Place in the bed
Front
Flowers
Early May to late May; upright spires; blue
Leaves
Medium texture, semi-evergreen; variegated, burgundy
Shape
Mat-forming, spreading
Hardy in
USDA zones 3 to 9
Light
Part sun, part shade, shade
Soil
Average, evenly moist
Water
Moderate
Feeding
None needed
Family
Lamiaceae
Comes from
Europe, northern Africa, southwestern Asia
Attracts
Bees, moths, hummingbirds, songbirds
Stands up to
Deer, rabbits, black walnut, foot traffic

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.