Mourning widow

Questions about mourning widow

Does mourning widow need sun or shade?

Mourning widow 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 ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.

What zones does mourning widow grow in?

USDA zones 4 to 8. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °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 mourning widow flower in my zone?

In zone 5 it flowers early May to mid June. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.

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 mourning widow be planted?

18 in (45 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is about its full width, so each plant keeps its own outline.

It grows 24 in (60 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.

How many mourning widow plants do I need?

At 18 in apart, set out in staggered rows:

• 5 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
• 7 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
• 17 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 five in one group.

Is there a native plant like mourning widow?

Mourning widow is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:

• Red baneberry: the same job in a bed, the same size and the same flowering time; white, not purple, wants moist soil.
• Wild geranium: the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 4 in shorter, pink, not purple.
• False Solomon's seal: the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 6 in taller, white, not purple.

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

Will mourning widow spread?

It seeds itself about; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Self-seeds freely. Remove the spent flowers to limit seedlings.

What flowers after mourning widow?

Mourning widow is over by mid 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.
• Black-eyed Susan: from mid July to mid September, 24 in tall.
• Daylily: from late June to early August, 2½ ft tall.

What does mourning widow look like in winter?

Mourning widow 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.