sweet woodruff
Galium odoratum
RHS Plants for Pollinators
USDA zones4 to 8
SunHandles partial sun to full shade
WaterHandles moderate to moist soil
Size6 to 12 inches tall9 to 18 inches wide
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Bloom season
- Spring, summer
- Bloom color
- White
- Foliage color
- Green
- Soil types
- Sand, loam, clay, chalk
- Soil pH
- Acid, alkaline, neutral
Garden uses
Attracts
Notes
Sweet woodruff (Galium odoratum) is a perennial for ground cover, naturalized areas, and borders. It is hardy to USDA zone 4, or down to -30°F (-34°C). This plant likes part sun to full shade and average to moist soil of most types. The white flowers open in spring and again in summer, and bees visit them. The green leaves are fragrant and stay evergreen. It sits low on the menu for deer and rabbits.
Pairs well with Woodland phlox, Wood lily, and Gladiator ornamental onion.
Native range
Europe, Middle East, Central Asia, Asia, and 13 more places. See all 17
Europe, Middle East, Central Asia, Asia, Africa, Altay, Corse, Krasnoyarsk, Krym, Manchuria, NW. Balkan Pen., Primorye, Qinghai, Sakhalin, Sicilia, Türkiye, and Xinjiang.