Is Jacob's Ladder deer resistant?
Polemonium caeruleum
Plant typePerennialHardinessZones 3–8LightFull shade to part shade
MaintenanceLow, mostly leave it alone
About Jacob's Ladder
Named for the leaflets arranged in neat rungs up each leaf stalk, which is worth looking at closely. Blue nodding flowers in late spring on a plant that wants cool moist shade and collapses in hot dry positions. Cut it back after flowering and the fresh foliage carries the rest of the season.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 6 to 7.5
- Drainage
- Consistently moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 18 to 24 in apart
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Maintenance
- Low
Similar to Jacob's Ladder
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 Jacob's Ladder 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 Jacob's Ladder belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Jacob's Ladder
- Is Jacob's Ladder deer resistant?
- Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum) is rated Seldom Severely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Light browsing at worst; rarely ruined.
- What hardiness zones does Jacob's Ladder grow in?
- Jacob's Ladder is hardy in USDA zones 3 to 8. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat.
- Does Jacob's Ladder grow in shade?
- Yes. Jacob's Ladder tolerates full shade to part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.