Shooting star
Dodecatheon meadia · Primulaceae
Clusters of pink or white flowers with swept-back petals, like tiny darts, on bare stems in spring. A prairie and woodland-edge ephemeral that goes dormant by summer.
- Size
- 16 in tall, 10 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Early May to late May
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around shooting star
The planner designed this bed around shooting star when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) naturalistic planting in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why shooting star stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Shooting star × 12, pink
- 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 5, tan
- 3 Leadwort × 15, blue
- 4 Coneflower 'Magnus' × 3, pink
- 5 Garden phlox 'Jeana' × 3, pink
- 6 Inkberry 'Gem Box' × 1, dark green leaves
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
- In the middle. At 16 in it is the step between moor grass 'Greenlee' (12 in) in front and inkberry 'Gem Box' (2½ ft) behind: each is seen over the one before.
- 12 plants in 2 groups (8 and 4). Seen again further along, the same plant ties the bed together.
Why now
- In flower for four weeks. From early May to late May.
- Opens the season. For its first two weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
- Leaves gone by midsummer. They die back and leave bare ground. A perennial that comes up late stands beside it, and grows over the gap.
Planned as a naturalistic planting: low grasses and groundcovers, the matrix, make up 46% of the planted ground. Coneflower 'Magnus' and garden phlox 'Jeana' anchor the back corners of the bed: the tallest plants on the plan stand there. Pink is the colour seen most, on 3 of the 5 kinds grown for their flowers.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 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 shooting star 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 disappears completely after flowering, so mark its place and plant it among low sedges or ferns that will cover the gap.
- Spring colour in a woodland or prairie garden
- Native planting
- Rock gardens
What to plant with shooting star
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Wild geranium: in flower together for four weeks, from early May.
- Pennsylvania sedge: its green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (8 in) to stand in front of it.
- Foamflower: in flower together for four weeks, from early May.
Questions about shooting star
Does shooting star need sun or shade?
Shooting star 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 ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does shooting star 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 shooting star 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.
| Zone 4 | Early May to late May |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Early May to late May |
| Zone 6 | Late April to mid May |
| Zone 7 | Mid April to early May |
| Zone 8 | Mid 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 shooting star be planted?
8 in (20 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 10 in (25 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 shooting star plants do I need?
At 8 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 27 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 16 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 86 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 12 in two groups.
Is shooting star 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.
Do deer eat shooting star?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
What flowers after shooting star?
Shooting star is over by late May. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Lady's mantle: from late May to early July, 18 in tall.
- Astilbe: from late June to mid July, 24 in tall.
- Daylily 'Stella de Oro': from mid June to mid September, 14 in tall.
What does shooting star look like in winter?
Shooting star has long gone by winter: it dies down in summer, soon after flowering, and comes back in spring.
Is shooting star good for bees and butterflies?
Shooting star is visited by bees.
It is native to the United States and Canada.
In these guides
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native perennials for pollinators
- Native plants for shade
- Garden plants native to Canada
- Plants for bees
- Plants for a white garden
Zone guides: Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
In flower in: May
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 16 in (40 cm) tall, 10 in (25 cm) wide
- Plant
- 8 in (20 cm) apart
- Height class
- Short (12 to 18 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Early May to late May; pink, white
- Leaves
- Medium texture, summer-dormant; green
- Shape
- Upright, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Primulaceae
- Comes from
- South Central Canada to Central & East U.S.A
- Attracts
- Bees
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.