Aaron's Beard St. John's Wort

Aaron's Beard St. John's Wort

Hypericum calycinum

Hypericaceae or Clusiaceae (St. John's Wort Family)

▲ ▼ plants in groundcover bed

▲ ▼ leaves

Hypericum calycinum: Aaron's Beard St. John's Wort

Location on or near campus: In Xeriscape Garden at corner of National and Linwood, about 1 mile south of campus

• leaves deciduous to semi-evergreen, opposite, simple, ovate with entire margins; leaves dark blue-green above and glaucous below; 2-4 inches long and 1/3 to 1/2 as wide, sometimes with odor
• stems brown to reddish brown, somewhat 4-angled, usually spreading or ascending, not stiffly upright; stems often die back in winter
• flowers bright yellow with many petals and stamens, up to 3 inches wide, often solitary (sometimes in small cluster) at tips of stems in summer through fall
• low mounded growth habit, about 1-2 feet tall and equally wide or wider
• likes full sun to part shade and dry, rocky soils; does better in cooler climates than southwest Missouri
• produces stolons to allow it to spread
• fast growth rate, but often need to prune back to ground each spring to keep it fresh looking