Filtered (1)
Prairie phlox is a compact, single-stemmed, plant 1/2-1.75' tall with (typically) a dome-shaped cluster of flowers at the apex. Individual flowers are 1/2-3/4" across, pink or lavender (rarely white); the corolla is tubular with five wedge-shaped, petal-like lobes often with darker markings (nectar guides) near the throat; the corolla is hairy on all external surfaces. The throat is very narrow; the five stamens with yellow anthers are recessed but just visible. The very short, tubular, hairy calyx base is green, with five long, narrow teeth that extend parallel to the narrow throat (also hairy) of the corolla. The fruit is oval and shorter than the calyx (in which it develops); when ripe, the capsule splits explosively, flinging the seeds in all directions. The species name ("pilosa") means "hairy" in Latin, and this species is indeed hairy on almost every surface. Prairie phlox flowers resemble smooth phlox (P. glaberrima) and, to a lesser extent, woodland phlox (P. divaricata), but the former species is quite hairy on the stems, leaves, and the exterior of the flower (the calyx); smooth phlox is hairless. Checking the hairiness (or lack thereof) of the calyx is the quickest way to tell prairie phlox from smooth phlox; checking the hairiness of the exterior of the corolla tube will distinguish woodland phlox (hairless) from prairie phlox (hairy).

Phlox

Phlox pilosa

prairie phlox [Blooms: Apr-Jun]