Hesperis Species, Dame's Violet, Dame's Rocket, Sweet Rocket, Wandering Lady

Hesperis Matronalis or Dame Rocket does give mixed feeling..but in my experience the negative characteristics are outweighed by the posit...Read Moreive attributes. This is a very elegant true biennial plant, the first year grow 18-24 inches tall and the second year give a majestic display of extremely fragrant bloom which nobody can resists: human, bee butterfly moths...when blooming form super dense flower spire
4-5 feet tall of all the possible hues from magenta to white. The bad things is that it prolifically self seed, but it is very, very easy to take care of it, since by simply cutting the spent flower stem before the seeds mature give rid of the problem.
As I said all the sort of pollinators seems to be attracted by the fragrant flower: From the large Bumblebees (and carpenter bee), to honeybee, up to the metallic small halictidae (sweat bee) hoverfly . I even saw the ``picky`` bumblebee moths visit Hesperis several times during the day...Good plant overall for my small garden!

A couple of years ago, Dames rocket showed up in my garden uninvited. At first, it was just a few plants here & there. This summer, it re...Read Moreally took over & came very close to wiping out my entire purple coneflower plantings! Because there was so much & the plants are impossible to pull once they're as established as these are, I've spent many days cutting them off as close to the ground as I can. This fall, I will have to use a chemical to kill what's left & hope I don't kill my coneflowers in the process! Bottom line? I HATE Dames Rocket as much as garlic mustard which I pull plenty of every spring!

It's blooming for me now in Zone 6b, along with Aquilgia, Iris, Salvia 'May Night', and so on. The problem is that some of the clumps FL...Read MoreOP. I started with one many many years ago; now it pops up everywhere.

In our area here in Wisconsin , this plant is highly invasive and illegal to sell. I think it's pretty as well, but there are many areas ...Read Morethat these have overtaken and driven out the native plants. The seeds are very easily transported from one spot to another. I've had them show up at the back of my yard where as soon as seen are taken from the ground and destroyed. They are so easily mistaken for wild phlox that I've seen people stopping along the roadside to collect some seeds. I tell them , if it's along the roadside in great numbers you can be assured that it will take over any garden you put it in without vigilant care. Also , many plants that prolific along side the road is more than likely an invasive. Be careful and check with your local authorities before planting to see if they are allowed in your area.

Hesperis is one of the most beautiful natives around. I am so tired of hearing about invasives. If someone doesn't want extra plants, j...Read Moreust pull them up. It's a simple matter. Hesperis is colorful, long blooming, and it smells heavenly. I think a woodland garden, or a garden anywhere for that matter, full of them would be ideal.

It's illegal to plant this species where I live and garden. This exotic species is prohibited or declared a noxious weed in three states,...Read More and both the US Forest Service and the National Park Service are asking people not to plant it:
http://na.fs.fed.us/spfo/invasiveplants/factsheets/pdf/dames...
http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/pubs/midatlantic/hema.htm

This pretty perennial self-sows aggressively and persistently in the garden, and can crowd out other more desirable garden plants if not regularly thinned. It can spread rapidly. The seeds can lie dormant in the soil for many years, only to sprout when conditions are right. Once you've let it go to seed, removing it requires a great deal of work over many years, even if you catch it before it's spread to neighboring properties. It's been five years, and I'm still trying, but it's wearing me down.

It is NOT native to North America, and is naturalized over most of the continent except the deep south. Though it isn't a North American wildflower, it is often included in cheap "wildflower" seed mixes here.

Garden phlox (Phlox paniculata) and meadow phlox (P. maculata) have similar garden qualities (including fragrance) but are harmless. Money plant/honesty (Lunaria) is also similar and seems not to be invasive.

Driving across New York State on I90, I observed with mixed feelings how many shady moist wild areas had been taken over by this plant. The color was pretty, but it reminded me of purple loosestrife and the similar widespread destruction of habitat wrought by that seductively colorful intruder...

Colorful, but invasive. There are much better native alternatives.

This is a lovely plant, but a highly aggressive invasive. It is the most noticeable woodland flower in my area.

This plant is native to Eurasia. I was hiking in a state park in southwest Michigan and there were huge strands of it crowding out the n...Read Moreative plants.

I carefully gathered "woodland phlox" seeds from a nearby hillside. Last year I had a carpet of fuzzy plants, not bad looking. This yea...Read Morer I have wonderful flowers with great smell: Dame's Rocket! Next time I gather seed, I'll bring my wildflower identification book along!
I'll miss the wonderful flowers on long, waving stalks, but this plant completely crowded out all of the biennial Colorado wildflowers planted with it. I'll enjoy this fellow on the nearby hillside, not on mine.

This was one of our favorite plants when we lived in Ohio, especially after we moved to the country. Every spring we used to love lookin...Read Moreg at the purple or white clumps at the edge of the woods. Even in Central Ohio sunshine it seemed to like the bright shade at the edge of the woods. Dame's Rocket added a nice splash of color to the Ohio springtime. Not sure how it will do in the Florida heat, but I just added it to my "Want" list.

I love Florida, but I miss Gambier...

This is a very invasive plant in southern Ontario:
From the Invasive Exotic Species Ranking for Southern Ontario

C...Read Moreategory 1
Aggressive invasive exotic species that can dominate a site to exclude all other species and remain dominant on the site indefinitely. These are a threat to natural areas wherever they
occur because they can reproduce by means that allow them to move long distances. Many of these are dispersed by birds, wind, water, or vegetative reproduction.

These are the top priority for control, but control may be difficult. Eradication may be the only option for long-term success.

I know that Dame's Rocket is technically an invasive exotic, but I love this plant. It blooms just as the Forget-Me-Nots and Pink Dogwoo...Read Mored finish, filling the garden with beautiful purple blooms and wonderful evening fragrance, and they keep blooming for a long, long time. Because I grow mine in light but pretty much constant shade, I have a little trouble with flopping (but I refuse on principle to stake anything). The plants have generally lived 2-4 years, but they haven't always reseeded as readily as I'd like or as expected (especially given their reputation for invasiveness). I think that they've just flopped over, gotten their stems crimped, and not finished the process of making seed (and this lack of seed production may explain why individual plants have sometimes lived considerably longer than 2 years). This year, for the first time, they did much better, not flopping as much (because I cut and took more of the tallest early flowerheads into the house), and I think they made more seed. So, we'll see if they are more vigorous next year. If not, I'll buy seed and resow. They're hardy, pretty, fragrant, undemanding, and timely. Despite being labelled an exotic, they have also long been a staple of American gardens -- an heirloom species from the 19th century. So, while not native, they're traditional.

Contrary to popular opinion, this species is not native to the U.S. and actually invades wild areas everywhere but the Deep South. Check ...Read Moreout the plants.usda.gov site for more info.

This plant is Prohibited in Massachusetts and Banned in Connecticut.

Although beautiful, this plant is an invasive exotic. It has completely taken over the woods at my parents' house near White Bear Lake, M...Read MoreN. I just read (June 15, 2007) that the noxious weed removal crews at the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden in Minneapolis are switching their target this weekend from Garlic Mustard to Dame's Rocket. I have ONE left in my yard and am making sure it does not make any seeds. Mission accomplished. If you like this flower type, get some native phlox or a garden phlox cultivar.

This plant is invasive in Michigan. It completely takes over the forest's edge and roadside areas where varieties of other plants used to...Read More grow before.

They smell wonderful. They're pretty. They grow in monolithic stands that turn the soil as hard as a rock. Hmm... maybe we could use them to kill off tree-of-heaven.

This is a great plant - I never water and they grow like crazy - bloom nad bloom but I never ever ever have found a new baby plant away ...Read Morefrom the parent plant. At least here in North Texas a great plant.

Dames Rocket has colonized an overgrown road to an abandoned ruin in a nearby woods that makes the most incredible color stream in shafts...Read More of light coming down through the trees of white to pale blush pink to deeper blue-y rose to purple. Quite a sight and treat for the nose.

The deer population rules this part of the woods, so this flower must be pretty deer resistant.

A neighbor pairs the huge purple globes of this flower with another flower with giant, double, white goblets: Peony 'Festiva Maxima' and repeats this twosome all up and down a pair of matching borders along a grassy lane.

This plant wintersowed nicely.

I adore this plant. The scent, the color, the height. It can do as it pleases in my garden. In April, I just move it where I want it....Read Morer /> I let it go to seed right on the stalk. A bit of cheesecloth wrapped around to top of the stalk will keep most of the seeds from flying around every which way. A few always have a "get out of jail free" card though and hide behind the roses. In early May, I have last years seeds saved to propagate (I don't even freeze them) and by late July, I have plants large enough to set out. They flower the following season, so it's not every other year. They are hardy little beggers and they give us a great deal of pleasure. Always an impressive display. In southern Ontario, they grow about 4' high, sometime a bit taller. Here, in the wild, it grows in shades of pale pink to deep purple, but usually about 2" to 3' high. It is a plant that needs to be kept in check, but very fine and deserving of any garden. Here it is mid July and there's still has a bit of flower left at the top. Been flowering since early May.

Dame's Rocket has an exquisive fragrance and it is trying to take over sections of my lawn/garden though mowing keeps it at bay. Being a ...Read Morebiennial you don't get to enjoy the display every year though.

This is very pretty and sweetly scented. It does self-seed, but I have not found it to be a problem as long as I keep ahead of them.

I'd heard Dame's Rocket described as invasive, too, so I was careful not to plant it in my loamy beds -- instead I planted it at and just...Read More inside the edges of the woodlands. It's flourishing, but not invading. Matter of fact, it is so well-behaved that I just ordered some more. The white makes a wonderful companion for woodland phlox, and the blue is gorgeous against the celadine poppy. My woodland garden is prettier than my beds -- and this great plant pulled it together! Please invade, anytime!

It's growing wild in my yard. Thought it was a weed. But it is already (late May) 4 feet tall and the flower is beautiful. As nice as a...Read Morenything that I paid for and planted in my perennial bed. I am thinking I should dig some up and move into the bed, but if it is invasive that would be a stupid thing to do.

I am growing this for the first time this year. I don't remember planting it, and I almost pulled the plants up in the spring before they...Read More bloomed. I only recently found out what it is. I am so glad I didn't trash them! The fragrance is great and the flowers are pretty.

I have grown Hesperis matronalis for several years now, and really like it.
Invasiveness can be controlled by deadheading after b...Read Morelooming and therefore eliminating the excessive seed production. This also encourages a second bloom period, if you leave most of the flower stalk and only cut off the old flower heads. Aphids like this plant, but can be knocked off with a strong blast of water from the garden hose. If grown in shady areas, the tall plants will lean toward the sun and may need staking. If you desire more plants, harvest some seed pods before they split open and just toss them in the vicinity...they usually sprout by late winter and might bloom by the next year (biennials or short-lived perennials). I have also propagated them from small plants that arise on the flower stems occasionally.

Beautiful flowers, but it is a bit invasive in my gardens. I started with one plant and now have them growing everywhere. I am getting ...Read Moreit under control by digging up the unwanted plants and making sure that the ones left don't go to seed. For that reason, I gave it a neutral instead of a negative

Update June 14, 2009 Apparently digging the unwanted plants isn't enough to control them. The seeds seem to have the ability to lay dormant for many years and germinate when the conditions are right. I had this plant eradicated from my garden, but they are back again this year in full force after adequate rainfall. I'm changing my rating from neutral to negative.

This plant is a common wildflower here in the Catskills. It grows by roadsides, ponds, in meadows, etc. and self seeds into stunning colo...Read Morenies. I have some in semi shade in my wild garden where it self-seeds nicely in wet clay soil, and competes with grasses, asters, and goldenrod quite successfully.

After plucking one of these stunning flowers from a small coulee east of my home, I took it to my county extension agent for identificati...Read Moreon. He had to contact ND State University to get an ID. I first noticed the plant last year on a walk around our property. It was just one 10'x10' spot where it was growing and it was a gorgeous blast of color in an otherwise grass dominated coulee. I was pretty thrilled to find out that is only classified as an invasive weed and not a noxious one. Bottom-line...it gets to live!! The plants are very robust, very bright magenta and about 3-4 feet tall. I have yet to see any others in North Dakota, but I'll be keeping a keen eye out for them now.

Heavenly fragrance! It arrived as a volunteer and I've been enjoying it ever since.

I love this plant in my garden, however now that it seems to have stopped blooming.

I first saw sweet rocket growing wild by the roadside and transplanted some to my garden. I love the fragrance and they have reseeded the...Read Moremselves quite nicely in wilder areas of my property. I would be careful in a formal bed as they can be strong growers and can take over when conditions are to their liking. They are best used for naturalizing on slopes and in wooland areas. They like a well drained soil and once established will reseed and come back for years.

The similar orange ones mentionned above are English wallflowers, Erysimum cheiri, some of which are biennal. They too have a wonderful frangrance.

Hellooo.... can you say agressive!!! I have hesperis in two parts of my garden, one side clay, the other loamy. In clay the plant is pi...Read Moretiful and small, about 12" tall, but in the loam it is almost 5 feet tall by 4 feet wide and it's choking out my other plants. I don't think it's wise to let it set seed unless you want it to take over.

Supposedly this was the favorite flower of Marie Antoinette.

This is a great garden plant in Tennessee. It gets quite tall - I had one that was about 5 ft. tall last year, but most are a bit shorter...Read More. It deals with the heat and dryness of summer very well.

Mine originally grew from a wildflower seed mix purchased at Walmart. I swear that I also had one that was a bright orange, but I can't find out anything about it online. The foliage was similar, and the blossom was the same shape and size. The plant was much shorter, though, only about 2 ft. tall. Sadly, I don't have it anymore because *someone* weed-wacked it one too many times... Does anyone know what this plant may have been?

The genus Hesperis has 60 species. Matronalis is grown for its flowers that are very fragrant on humid evenings. The leaves are smooth, n...Read Morearrow and oval. The flowerheads are branching, colors are white to lilac and blossoms in summer. Grows 12" to 36" high and spreads about 24". Best grown in full sun with moist well draining soil, soil should be neutral to slightly alkaline. Propagate by seed, or cuttings. Hardy zones 3-9. Plants sometimes lose their vigor and are best renewed every 2-3 years. Check for slugs and snails.