Pugster Blue® Butterfly Bush

Choose Pugster Blue® if you want a compact butterfly bush with full-size blue-violet flower spikes; the tradeoff is it behaves more like a cut-back shrub than a woody backbone plant in New England.

Buy This If

• You want big flowers on a compact plant.
• You can cut it back each spring.
• You need a deer-resistant flowering shrub.

Skip This If

• You need year-round privacy.
• Your spot stays wet after rain.
• You want a no-pruning shrub.

PGNE Report Card

Our Experience

At PGNE, we’d typically recommend this for sunny beds where the customer wants summer bloom and accepts a spring cutback; we would not use it as the main structure in a foundation planting.

Plant Facts

Customers Usually Ask

Do I cut it back?

Yes, cut it back in spring once new growth starts.

Will it attract butterflies?

Yes, the flower spikes are very attractive to adult butterflies.

Is it a good hedge?

No, use it as a flowering accent, not a hedge or screen.