We love this giant leaf form of the native North American purple heart spiderwort. We visited California’s Mike Kartuz in 2004 to inquire about its origin, but the trail went cold. Regardless, Tradescantia ‘Kartuz Giant’ makes an impressive 3′ wide, deer-resistant clump of dusty purple foliage that is three times the size of the typical species. In early summer, the clumps are topped with the typical small, light lavender flowers. For us, it’s great in the border for summer color, but in colder climates Tradescantia pallida ‘Kartuz Giant’ makes a nice accent in baskets and summer color bowls.
