Phlox

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For the Star Trek: Enterprise character, see Phlox (Star Trek).

Poniculata

Phlox douglasii

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Ericales
Family:	Polemoniaceae
Genus:	Phlox L.

Species

About 65 species; see text

Phlox (pronounced "flocks") is a genus of 67 species of annual or perennial flowering plants. Some species flower in early spring while others flower in summer into fall. Most species are native to temperate North America but a few species are also from northeastern Asia. They are found growing in diverse habitats from alpine locations to open woodlands and prairies.

Phlox range in color from pale blue to bright red to white. Some species such as Phlox glaberrima (Smooth Phlox) grow to 1.5 m tall, while others, such as Phlox stolonifera (Creeping Phlox), form low mats only a few centimetres in height.

Phlox is best grown in well-drained soil, exposed to partial shade to partial sun. The foliage of Phlox is sometimes eaten by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Dot Moth, Gazoryctra wielgusi, Hummingbird Hawk-moth and Schinia indiana which feeds exclusively on P. pilosa. Phlox species are also a popular food source for groundhogs, rabbits and deer. The flowers, when fertilized typically produce one relatively large seed.