Ohio Spiderwort - Tradescantia ohiensis

Features: Ohio Spiderwort features blue-green grass-like foliage and small clumps of beautiful three-petaled blue-violet (or light violet) flowers.  The flowers open in the morning and close in the afternoon sunshine.  On cloudy days the flowers stay open longer.  This plant adapts to a variety of soil conditions: loam, clay, gravel and sand.  It blooms best in full sun to light shade.

Bees, especially bumblebees pollinate the flowers.  Critters such as deer, rabbits and box turtles will eat the foliage.

This plant readily reseeds. When blooms are spent foliage may be trimmed to help limit reseeding and may encourage a second bloom.

Light: Full or light partial sun (for best bloom), tolerates part-shade but with fewer flowers

Soil: Moist to slightly dry, loam, clay, gravel or sand

Height: 2-4 feet

Blooms: May, June, early July

For more information and photos see Illinois Wildflowers, Minnesota Wildflowers and The Morton Arboretum