Liriope Stripey White
Cream-striped leaves lift a shaded corner in a way plain green cannot. 'Stripey White' is a variegated turf lily, its narrow arching leaves boldly marked lengthwise in creamy white against mid green, so the clump reads as a pale fountain in low light. Slim flower spikes rise above the foliage in summer and autumn. The plant is evergreen and holds its variegation through winter.
Variegated strappy plants are best used deliberately rather than in bulk, so this works as an accent at a path edge, in a group beneath dark-leaved shrubs, along a shaded courtyard bed, or in a pot where the striping can be seen close up. It sits well with ferns, hostas and dark coprosmas.
Plant in part shade in free-draining soil with compost worked through. Deep shade keeps the variegation clean while hot afternoon sun can scorch the pale tissue, so a position with morning sun and afternoon shade is the safest choice. It forms a tidy clump rather than running. Space plants 25 to 30 cm apart.
Forms a clump around 0.3 to 0.4 m tall and much the same across.
Trimming: Cut the clump back hard at the end of winter to clear tired foliage before new leaves push through. Trim out any leaves that revert to plain green as soon as you notice them, since green growth is stronger and will take over.
Deadheading: Take spent spikes off at the base once flowering finishes. On a variegated plant the foliage is the main event, so tidiness matters more here than keeping the seed heads.
Fertilising: One feed as growth starts in spring is enough. Avoid heavy nitrogen, which pushes soft green growth and dulls the contrast in the leaves.
Watering: Keep the soil evenly moist for the first two seasons, then water in dry spells. Pale variegated tissue browns at the tips faster than green foliage when a plant runs dry.
Pest Control: Grazing on the leaf edges comes from slugs and snails, and the marks stay on show all year on an evergreen. Mealybugs can shelter in the crowns of container plants.
Disease Management: Crown rot follows wet, badly drained soil. Anthracnose shows as brown blotches and dieback at the leaf tips in humid conditions, and the late-winter cut back removes most affected foliage.
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