Orobanchaceae
Pink-elephants
Pedicularis groenlandica
Also known as Elephant heads, Pedicularis groenlandica f. gracilis, Elephantella groenlandica, Pedicularis groenlandica subsp. surrecta
Flowering Plants · Native Plants · Wildflower · Hemiparasitic · Alpine · Wetland · Native · Perennial · Pink Flowers · Difficult · Mountain · North America
Pink-elephants is a hemiparasitic wildflower that attaches to the roots of nearby grasses and sedges, making it extremely challenging to cultivate outside its native wet meadow and alpine stream habitats. It requires consistently moist, nutrient-poor soil and a suitable host plant to thrive. This species is best appreciated in the wild and is not recommended for home garden cultivation.
Growing conditions
The details behind the basics
- Daily light
- 4 hours
- Watering
- Keep soil consistently moist but not waterlogged; mimics boggy alpine conditions · Every 5-7 days during growing season
- Maintenance
- High
- Soil
- loam
- Soil pH
- 5.8–7.2
- Temperature
- -25°F to 95°F
- Cycle
- Perennial
- Propagation
- Seed
Hardiness
USDA 4b-9b
Form & growth
Mature size and habit
- Mature height
- 10 ft – 30 ft
- Spread
- 15 ft
- Spacing
- 12 in apart
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Root depth
- Medium
- Flowers
- Pink
- Foliage
- Green · Fine
Ecology & origin
Where it belongs and what it brings
- Native to
- Alaska, Alberta, Arizona, British Columbia, California, Colorado, Greenland, Idaho, Labrador, Manitoba, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Newfoundland, Nunavut, Ontario, Oregon, QuéBec, Saskatchewan, Utah
- Attracts
- Bees, Hummingbirds, Butterflies
Sources: trefle, usda
More Pedicularis
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