Thalictrum del Splendide White

• Variety: Splendide White
• Latin name: Thalictrum Splendide White ('Fr21034')
• Common name: Meadow rue
• Type: Herbaceous perennial
• Flower: Airy clouds of small, nodding white flowers with prominent stamens
• Height: 1.75m (5ft 9in)
• Spread: 50cm-1m
• Flowering: June-August
• Hardiness: Hardy anywhere in the UK (H7)
• Pruning: Cut the stems down once flowering is over
• RHS AGM: Yes, awarded 2016
• Sold as: P9 pots, grown on by us in Somerset from licensed young plants. Peat-free compost
• Plant outdoors: Any month the ground is workable
• Delivered: Year-round, whenever it is in stock. Collection from Castle Cary also available
• Collection: Perennial plants

Splendide White is a tall white meadow rue: 1.75m (5ft 9in) of upright stems carrying a haze of small white flowers all summer, for moist soil in partial shade.

Thalictrum Splendide White: Height Without Weight for a Shady Border

Splendide White is a sturdy, upright, clump-forming meadow rue that grows to 1.75m, with airy clouds of nodding white flowers held on tall stems through summer. It holds the RHS Award of Garden Merit, given in 2016. Each flower is small, with a tuft of prominent stamens, and there are hundreds of them, so the effect is of mist hanging at head height. Below, the leaves are divided into neat, oblong green leaflets, handsome from the day they unfurl.

Most tall perennials are solid things that block the view. This one you look through, which is why it works in the middle of a border as well as the back, and why it lifts a shady corner that would otherwise be all hostas and ferns at knee height. It wants moist, humus-rich soil in partial shade; in dry ground it sulks and is prone to mildew. In an open position the stems need a discreet stake, put in early. It is hardy anywhere in Britain and dies back to the ground each winter.

Your plant arrives in a 9cm pot and will look modest in its first summer; the RHS allows two to five years for a thalictrum to reach full height. Plant it, water it through dry spells and be patient. By its third year you will be looking up at it.

Planting Companions

Give it neighbours that enjoy the same cool, moist soil. The broad leaves of Hosta June make the ideal foil for its fine foliage, and the Japanese lace fern fills the ground beneath. Astilbe Pumila adds plumes at a lower level, and Anemone Snow Angel brings more white later in the year.

Why Ashridge?

Ashridge Nurseries was named Which? Best Plant Supplier 2025, on the votes of its customers. Your thalictrum is grown on in Somerset in peat-free compost, in recycled pots, by the same small team who pack it and answer the telephone.

Frequently Asked Questions

How tall does Thalictrum Splendide White grow?

Thalictrum Splendide White grows to 1.75m tall and 50cm to 1m across. The stems are slender and the flowers airy, so it never looks heavy for its height.

Does Thalictrum Splendide White grow in shade?

Thalictrum Splendide White does best in partial shade, in moist, humus-rich soil. Full sun is fine only where the ground never dries out.

Does Thalictrum Splendide White need staking?

Thalictrum Splendide White needs staking in an open or windy position. Put the support in early, while growth is short, and the stems will hide it.

Which is the best tall white perennial for a shady border?

Thalictrum Splendide White is hard to beat for height in partial shade: 1.75m of airy white flower, with the RHS Award of Garden Merit since 2016. Hostas and ferns beneath it complete the planting.

When should I cut back thalictrum?

Cut the stems down once flowering is over. That is all the pruning it asks for.