Isotoma axillaris 'Blue Star'

A terrific plant with multibranched stems, Isotoma 'Blue Star' forms a great mound of lilac-coloured, star-like flowers. It's best shown off in a tall, narrow, chimney-pot type container, lifting the mass of growth off the ground where it balloons out. This can be used to fill border gaps in summer, adding height, or planted at strategic points on a terrace.

Grow Isotoma 'Blue Star' in loam-based compost or moist but well-drained soil. Pinch out the young growth to make it even bushier, and give it a fortnightly liquid feed in summer. Deadhead spent blooms to prolong flowering.