Creeping Phlox is a perennial grown for its purple blooms, which open in early spring and return year after year. It's hardy across USDA zones 4 through 10, shrugs off deer and grows just as well in a container as in the ground. Its early spring flowers are a real draw for native bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and moths.
Creeping Phlox — the short answer
Creeping Phlox: grown in zones 4–10, part sun, pH 5.7–8.
- USDA zones
- 4–10
- Manual horticultural correction (source not retained); NC State Extension and Missouri Botanical Garden, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation
- Soil pH
- 5.7–8
- USDA PLANTS
- Sun
- Part Sun
- Growable Ground Plant Database
Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS and university Extension sources — each tile names its own row's source, because per-field provenance varies.
Score Creeping Phlox on your exact land.
Zone averages can't see the slope, soil, frost, and sun that decide whether creeping phlox actually takes — and those shift from one yard to the next. Enter your address and we'll score creeping phlox against your land's real conditions.
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What Creeping Phlox is
Creeping Phlox grows as a perennial and reaches around 6 inches at maturity. It blooms purple in early spring. It's also deer-resistant and well suited to containers.
How to grow Creeping Phlox
Creeping Phlox grows in USDA zones 4 through 10. Creeping Phlox does best in part sun — at least 4 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 5.7 to 8, on well-drained ground. It needs a growing season of at least 100 frost-free days, which is why climate matters as much as soil.
USDA Zones
4-10
USDA PHZM 2023
Soil pH
5.7 - 8
USDA PLANTS
Sun
Part Sun
Growable Ground plant catalog
Drainage
well (dry spells)
Growable Ground plant catalog
Cold Hardiness
-33°F
The coldest temperature this plant is documented to survive.
USDA PLANTS
Mature Height
0.5 ft
Growable Ground plant catalog
Frost-Free Days
100+
The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.
Growable Ground plant catalog
Start the season right
Plant creeping phlox in part sun with at least 4 hours of direct sun. It grows in the cool halves of the year, so sow it in spring or late summer rather than waiting for midsummer heat.
Match the soil
Creeping Phlox prefers pH 5.7 to 8 (USDA PLANTS). A quick soil test from your local Extension lab tells you whether to add lime or sulfur to land in band.
Water steadily
Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. A 2–3 inch mulch layer holds moisture without waterlogging.
Harvest at its peak
Cut creeping phlox blooms in the cool of the morning, just as they open, for the longest display.
Where Creeping Phlox thrives
Creeping Phlox is hardy across USDA zones 4 through 10. Zone is only the starting point, though: the soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific land decide how well it actually does.
A USDA zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme winter minimum, so zones 4–10 spans average winter lows from -30°F to 40°F (USDA PHZM 2023). Across the 50 states and DC, that band covers 38 outright and splits 13 more down the middle — and which side of that line your land sits on changes the answer.
Zones 4–10·Where Creeping Phlox growsOpen map →
Where Creeping Phlox stands, state by state
Creeping Phlox is rated for zones 4–10 — a cold floor USDA puts at -30 to -20°F. Across the 50 states and DC, 38 sit fully inside that band, the line runs through 13 more, and 0 sit outside it — and inside every split state, the same line runs on at county grain.
Fully inside zones 4–10
38 states
3 of 38 shown
State zone extents: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023. A zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme minimum temperature, so a state that splits the band contains the boundary — its own page draws the county line, and a parcel report resolves which side your land sits on.
What grows around Creeping Phlox
Growing guides for creeping phlox
In rotation planning, creeping phlox counts as a Other — beds recover best when other crops don’t follow each other in the same spot year over year. (Growable Ground derivation — crop-rotation group from botanical family)
Related plants in perennial flower
Good to know
Good news for pet owners — creeping phlox isn't known to be toxic to dogs or cats. (Source: ASPCA.)
Creeping Phlox is a standout pollinator plant — high value to bees and other pollinators. (Source: Xerces Society.)
Your land is one point inside Creeping Phlox's range
This page resolves to the species. Your state page draws the county line, and a report reads the parcel — the soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost dates on your exact ground, which no species average can see.
See if Creeping Phlox will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether creeping phlox actually takes — we score it against the real conditions at your address.
Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:
We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.
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How we know this about Creeping Phlox
The figures above are cited per row, not per site: the pH band names this plant’s own source column, the three temperature figures each carry their own, and days-to-maturity cites the publication that actually lists it. All of it comes from the Growable Ground Plant Database — a compilation over FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS, and university Extension sources, published openly with per-field provenance.
Grounded inUSDA PLANTS Database•USDA PHZM•ASPCA
Frequently asked questions
Can I grow Creeping Phlox in my zone?
Creeping Phlox grows in USDA hardiness zones 4 through 10 (USDA PHZM 2023). Zone is one factor — soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific parcel also shape whether it takes.
When should you plant Creeping Phlox?
Creeping Phlox is a cool-season crop, so it goes in during the cool halves of the year — early spring, and again in late summer for a fall planting — rather than at the height of summer heat. Your local frost dates set the exact window — a Growable Ground report reads them for your address.
How much sun does Creeping Phlox need?
Creeping Phlox does well in partial sun — around 4 hours of direct sun, and it takes some afternoon shade in stride. That flexibility makes it a good match for a bed the house or a nearby tree shades for part of the day. A Growable Ground report maps how the sun actually falls on your land, hour by hour, so you can set it where the light lines up.
What soil does Creeping Phlox need?
Creeping Phlox prefers soil pH 5.7 to 8, on well-drained ground (USDA PLANTS). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Creeping Phlox attract pollinators?
Yes — creeping phlox's flowers are a strong nectar and pollen source for native bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and moths. (Source: Xerces Society.)
Is Creeping Phlox safe for pets?
Creeping Phlox is not known to be toxic to dogs or cats based on available data. Always supervise pets around new plantings. (Source: ASPCA.)