Is Bugloss deer resistant?
Anchusa sp.
About Bugloss
Bristly, coarse-textured leaves that deer refuse, carrying some of the most intense blue flowers available to a garden. The tall Italian species is the one usually sold and it has a real weakness: it grows fast, gets top-heavy and falls flat in the first summer storm. Stake it early, before it needs it, or cut it back after the first flowering to force a shorter second flush. It is also short-lived, often behaving as a biennial, so let some seed drop if you want it to persist. Deep taproot, which means it resents being moved once settled and does not divide well. Take root cuttings instead if you want more of it.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 6 to 7.5
- Drainage
- Well drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 18 to 24 in apart
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Maintenance
- Moderate
Similar to Bugloss
Other perennials with the same deer rating.
- African LilyAgapanthus sp.Zones 8–11, genus rangeSeldom damaged
- AsparagusAsparagus officinalisZones 2–9Seldom damaged
- AsterAster sp.Zones 3–8, genus rangeSeldom damaged
- AstilbeAstilbe x arendsiiZones 3–8Seldom damaged
- Baby's BreathGypsophila sp.Zones 3–9, genus rangeSeldom damaged
- BastardsageEriogonum wrightiiZones 5–10Seldom damaged
Where Bugloss grows
Hardy across most of these 50 states on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering.
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- New York
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- Tennessee
- Georgia
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Oregon
- Washington
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Maine
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- South Carolina
- Florida
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
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Every list Bugloss belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Bugloss
- Is Bugloss deer resistant?
- Bugloss (Anchusa sp.) is rated Seldom Severely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Light browsing at worst; rarely ruined.
- What hardiness zones does Bugloss grow in?
- Bugloss is hardy in USDA zones 3 to 8. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat. That is the range across the genus, so a named species or cultivar may be narrower.
- Does Bugloss grow in shade?
- No. Bugloss wants full sun and will grow thin and flop in shade.