Mountain laurel 'Elf'
Kalmia latifolia 'Elf' · Ericaceae
A dwarf mountain laurel, waist high after many years, with small leaves and pale pink buds that open nearly white.
- Size
- 3 ft tall, 3 ft wide
- Zones
- 5 to 9
- Light
- Part sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Late May to late June
- Pets
- Toxic (severe)
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around mountain laurel 'Elf'
The planner designed this bed around mountain laurel 'Elf' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why mountain laurel 'Elf' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Mountain laurel 'Elf' × 1, pink
- 2 Mouse-ear coreopsis 'Nana' × 19, yellow
- 3 Blue star creeper × 11, blue
- 4 Brown-eyed Susan × 8, yellow
- 5 Foamy bells 'Sweet Tea' × 3, bronze leaves
- 6 Surprise lily × 3, pink
Why this plant
- The bed's only structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down, and it is the only one here.
- The only dense clusters. The others are daisies and trumpets. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 3 ft it is one of the taller plants here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to brown-eyed Susan (4 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for four weeks. From late May to late June.
- Part of the bed's peak. With mouse-ear coreopsis 'Nana' and blue star creeper in late May: 3 kinds at once. No week has more.
- One of two evergreens. They are what the bed has to show from November to March.
Planned as an English border: 7 of the 8 groups (88%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The most in flower at one time is 3 kinds, from late May. Not everything here depends on flower: foamy bells 'Sweet Tea' earns its place with leaves. Every line of the Design check comes out Good or better.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where mountain laurel 'Elf' goes in a border
At 3 ft it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium tall (2½ to 3 ft).
Its job: drift. Planted in a small group of three or five, and repeated further along in the other number.
Mountain laurel at a size for foundation planting or the front of a woodland bed. Slow, dense and long-lived.
- A small evergreen for acid shade
- Foundation planting
- The front of a woodland bed
What to plant with mountain laurel 'Elf'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Foamflower: spires rising out of its mound; low enough (10 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Japanese painted fern: its silver leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Lowbush blueberry: low enough (16 in) to stand in front of it.
Questions about mountain laurel 'Elf'
Does mountain laurel 'Elf' need sun or shade?
Mountain laurel 'Elf' grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does mountain laurel 'Elf' grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 9. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does mountain laurel 'Elf' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late May to late June. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 5 | Late May to late June |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Late May to late June |
| Zone 7 | Mid May to mid June |
| Zone 8 | Early May to mid June |
| Zone 9 | Early May to early June |
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 mountain laurel 'Elf' be planted?
2½ ft (80 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 3 ft (90 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 3 ft (90 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many mountain laurel 'Elf' plants do I need?
At 2½ ft apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 2 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 4 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 5 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 mountain laurel 'Elf' poisonous to dogs and cats?
Yes: severe toxicity to people, dogs, cats and horses. All parts, including the nectar, are highly poisonous if eaten and can affect the heart.
Rated from NC State Extension and the ASPCA. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Is there a pet-safe plant like mountain laurel 'Elf'?
These come closest to doing what mountain laurel 'Elf' does, and no toxicity is recorded for them:
- Arborvitae 'Mr. Bowling Ball': the same job in a bed; 6 in shorter, 8 in narrower.
- Abelia 'Rose Creek': the same job in a bed; 4 in wider, flowers late June to early October.
- Columbine meadow rue: the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 14 in narrower, not evergreen.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat mountain laurel 'Elf'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after mountain laurel 'Elf'?
Mountain laurel 'Elf' is over by late June. 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, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Black-eyed Susan: from mid July to mid September, 24 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Daylily: from late June to early August, 2½ ft tall.
What does mountain laurel 'Elf' look like in winter?
Mountain laurel 'Elf' keeps its dark green leaves all winter, so it is one of the plants that hold a bed together from November to March, when the perennials have gone.
Is mountain laurel 'Elf' good for bees and butterflies?
Mountain laurel 'Elf' is visited by pollinators, butterflies and hummingbirds.
It is native to the United States (this is a named variety of the native plant).
More Kalmia
- Mountain laurel Kalmia latifolia
- Mountain laurel 'Olympic Fire' Kalmia latifolia 'Olympic Fire'
In these guides
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Garden plants toxic to cats
- Garden plants toxic to dogs
- Native plants for shade
- Plants for hummingbirds
- Plants for butterflies
- Evergreen shrubs for structure
- Shrubs under 4 feet for small gardens
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 3 ft (90 cm) tall, 3 ft (90 cm) wide
- Plant
- 2½ ft (80 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium tall (2½ to 3 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- Late May to late June; dense clusters; pink, white
- Leaves
- Fine texture, evergreen; dark green
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 9
- Light
- Part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Ericaceae
- Comes from
- Eastern U.S.A
- Attracts
- Pollinators, butterflies, hummingbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer
Checked against NC State Extension, ASPCA poison lists 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.