Gardening Flowers Perennials Rue By Viveka Neveln Viveka Neveln Instagram Viveka Neveln is the Garden Editor at BHG and a degreed horticulturist with broad gardening expertise earned over 3+ decades of practice and study. She has more than 20 years of experience writing and editing for both print and digital media. Learn about BHG's Editorial Process Updated on January 31, 2017 Share Tweet Pin Email Rue Overview Description This shrubby aromatic herb has been used for medicinal and culinary purposes for centuries. It is rarely used nowadays in American cuisine because the leaves have a bitter flavor. Rue grows best in full sun but tolerates light shade. It must have good drainage to survive, however. Rue has fine-texture blue-green foliage and bears yellow flowers in summer. Rue self-seeds, so remove flower heads before they set seed to avoid more plants. This shrub can be clipped into a neat hedge, making it an ideal herb for knot gardens. Genus Name Ruta spp. Common Name Rue Plant Type Herb, Perennial Light Part Sun, Sun Height 6 to 6 inches Width 18 to 24 inches Flower Color Yellow Foliage Color Blue/Green Season Features Summer Bloom Special Features Cut Flowers, Low Maintenance Zones 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 Propagation Seed, Stem Cuttings Problem Solvers Deer Resistant, Drought Tolerant More varieties for rue 'Jackman's Blue' rue Ruta graveolens 'Jackman's Blue' is noted for its especially blue foliage. Like common rue, it bears yellow flowers throughout the summer. It grows 2-3 feet tall and 18-24 inches wide. Zones 4-9 Fringed rue Ruta chalapensis gets its common name from its fringed yellow flowers, which appear in spring on plants with blue-green foliage that closely resembles that of common rue. Other common names for this variety include Egyptian rue, wall rue, and Aleppo rue. It is a favorite larva plant of swallowtail butterflies. It grows 2-3 feet tall and 2 feet wide. Zones 8-10 Plant rue with tips and ideas to grow herbs with perennials More Videos » Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit