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Perennial of the Plantaginaceae family, Penstemon hirsutus is native to eastern North America, from Quebec to Virginia, where it grows in dry meadows, rocky outcrops, and open edges on poor and well-drained substrates, at low and medium altitude. The variety pygmaeus is a dwarf form, spontaneous or selected, particularly appreciated in alpine cultivation.
The plant forms a low and compact tuft of only 8 to 15 cm, with distinctly hairy-hispid erect stems, as the species name suggests. The leaves are small, oval-lanceolate, dark green, slightly toothed, bearing visible pubescence that gives them a matte and slightly rough texture to the touch. The stems and calyxes often have reddish or purplish hues.
The flowers are tubular-bilabiate, modest in size but numerous, with a white washed with pale lilac pink on the outside, lighter to white inside the throat. The flower buds, distinctly colored pink-violet, contrast with the open corollas. The entire flowering stem is covered with a well-visible glandular hairiness.
In its natural habitat, the species blooms from May to July. In cultivation, the variety pygmaeus generally blooms in May-June.
It requires a well-drained soil, dry to moderately fresh, poor to moderately fertile, in full sun or very light partial shade. Its compactness and hardiness make it an ideal choice for rock gardens, troughs, and gravel gardens.