Lead Plant is a perennial grown for its purple blooms, which open in late spring and return year after year. It's hardy across USDA zones 4 through 10 and shrugs off deer. Its late spring flowers are a real draw for native bees and butterflies. A nitrogen-fixer, it draws nitrogen from the air and feeds it back to the soil — turn it under or leave the roots in place, and the next planting inherits a richer bed.
Zones
4-10
pH Range
5-8.5
Sun
Full Sun
Days to Maturity
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Score Lead Plant on your exact land.
Zone averages can't see the slope, soil, frost, and sun that decide whether lead plant actually takes — and those shift from one yard to the next. Enter your address and we'll score lead plant against your land's real conditions.
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What Lead Plant is
Lead Plant grows as a perennial. It blooms purple in late spring. It's also deer-resistant.
How to grow Lead Plant
Lead Plant grows in USDA zones 4 through 10. Lead Plant does best in full sun — at least 6 hours of direct sun a day — and soil from pH 5 to 8.5. 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 - 8.5
USDA PLANTS Database
Sun
Full Sun
plant_species_v5.csv
Drainage
Data pending
plant_species_v5.csv
Frost Tolerance
-38°F
plant_species_v5.csv
Frost-Free Days
100+
plant_species_v5.csv
Start the season right
Plant lead plant in full sun with at least 6 hours of direct sun, once the soil has warmed and frost risk has passed.
Match the soil
Lead Plant prefers pH 5 to 8.5 (USDA PLANTS Database). A quick soil test from your local Extension lab tells you whether to add lime or sulfur to land in band. It fixes its own nitrogen, so skip the high-nitrogen feed and instead dust the seed with a matching rhizobium inoculant at sowing.
Water steadily
Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. Match watering to the plant's drainage preference and your local rainfall.
Harvest at its peak
Cut lead plant blooms in the cool of the morning, just as they open, for the longest display.
Good to know
Good news for pet owners — lead plant isn't known to be toxic to dogs or cats. (Source: ASPCA.)
Lead Plant is a standout pollinator plant — high value to bees and other pollinators. (Source: Xerces Society, Pollinator Partnership.)
Where Lead Plant thrives
Lead Plant 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.
Zones 4–10·Where Lead Plant growsOpen map →
On USDA hardiness-zone overlap, Lead Plant can grow in these states:
See if Lead Plant will thrive on your land
Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether lead plant 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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Frequently Asked Questions
Can I grow Lead Plant in my zone?
Lead Plant 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 Lead Plant?
Most growers plant lead plant after the last spring frost, once the soil has warmed, leaving enough of the season for its 100-day frost-free need. Your local frost dates set the exact window — a Growable Ground report reads them for your address.
How much sun does Lead Plant need?
Lead Plant needs full sun — a spot that catches at least 6 hours of direct summer sun a day. In more shade it still grows, but usually gives a smaller, later crop. The catch is that a yard rarely gets even light everywhere — a fence, the house, or one tall tree can quietly take those hours. A Growable Ground report reads the real sun-hours across your land, canopy and buildings included, so you can pick the brightest bed before you plant.
What soil does Lead Plant need?
Lead Plant prefers soil pH 5 to 8.5 (USDA PLANTS Database). Your report scores your parcel's actual soil against that using USDA SSURGO data.
Does Lead Plant attract pollinators?
Yes — lead plant's flowers are a strong nectar and pollen source for native bees and butterflies (Xerces Society, Pollinator Partnership).
Is Lead Plant safe for pets?
Lead Plant is not known to be toxic to dogs or cats based on available data (ASPCA). Always supervise pets around new plantings.