Ohio Spiderwort
Tradescantia ohioensis
Violet-blue flowers open every morning for six to eight weeks over blue-green, grass-like foliage. Adaptable from full sun to part shade.
Typically 1 pint–1 gal · $9–$30 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
The morning-to-afternoon bloom cycle, the blue-violet color, and the easy-going adaptability make this one of the most low-maintenance spring perennials we carry.
Ohio Spiderwort opens its three-petaled violet-blue flowers in the morning and closes them by early afternoon, the daily rhythm giving the planting a quality that changes between your morning coffee on the porch and midday in the garden. The flowers appear in late spring and continue for six to eight weeks, clustered at the tips of the arching, blue-green, grass-like foliage. Each bloom lasts just one day, but new buds open continuously, and the mass of blue-violet above the strappy leaves is striking from a distance. Spiderwort is a reliable, adaptable native that will grow in a range of conditions from full sun to partial shade, and from average to moist soil. It self-sows freely and can spread assertively in open, disturbed soil. Give it a defined space, or plant it where you want it to naturalize. The glaucous foliage is genuinely attractive all season and the plant rarely needs supplemental water once established. Native bees visit the flowers reliably each morning during the bloom window.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown ohio spiderwort propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Average
- Mature size
- 1.5–3 ft · 18–24 in wide
- Bloom time
- Late spring through early summer
- Bloom color
- Purple, Blue
- USDA zones
- 4–9
- Family
- Commelinaceae
- Native range
- Eastern and central North America from Ontario south to Florida and west to Nebraska; meadows, open woods, roadsides
Care notes for ohio spiderwort.
Full to part sun, average to moist soil. Drought tolerant once established. Cut foliage back hard to about six inches in midsummer after blooming slows. plants will flush with fresh new growth and may rebloom lightly in fall. Self-seeds; remove seedlings to control spread or transplant to new locations. Divide in early spring every few years to rejuvenate.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside ohio spiderwort.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.

Short on Space Package
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Shade Bed Package
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Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.